Oliver Bonas
From Six Stores to a Nationwide Brand: How Futura Supports Oliver Bonas’s Retail Journey
Oliver Bonas is an independent British lifestyle retailer known for its distinctive blend of fashion, homeware, gifts, and accessories. Founded in 1993, the company has grown from a single shop on Fulham Road, London, into a nationwide brand with over 80 stores across the UK and Ireland, as well as a strong online presence.
Futura was first installed in 2000, when there were only six stores and have worked on numerous innovations with Oliver Bonas as the brand has evolved.
Intelligent Stock Replenishments
Tim Hollidge, Chief Operating Officer of Oliver Bonas, sees Futura as a key partner in supporting his business expansion, allowing his team to focus on sourcing the right products and enhancing the customer experience.
As well as better buying and improving stock allocation to shops, he sees Futura’s merchandising strength in intelligent stock replenishment and planning as a key reason why Oliver Bonas has limited stock exposure. Even more importantly, target stock levels help the team achieve a high percentage of goods sold at 100%.
When opening new branches, the Oliver Bonas merchandising team can use historical data to help forecast a sales profile, to indicate what to stock, how much should be sold and to predict sales levels of different products.
Optimised retailing
To ensure that capital is not tied up in too much stock and that stores are not empty, the team uses recommended re-ordering, auto replenishment and inter-branch transfers. But the greatest example of the system’s merchandising strength is its live replenishment. At sale times or at Christmas, Futura’s ability to update the system with sales levels and stock sold from each branch every 10 minutes, means the system can replenish the stores from the warehouse the next morning or within 24 hours – a huge advantage in maximising fast selling lines.
Greater Management Information
With a growing omnichannel presence, Oliver Bonas relies on unified management information to ensure data-driven retail strategies. “As management information becomes ever more significant in a multi-channel environment, having just one system running across all channels simplifies everything, according to Tim Hollidge. Reports include store and web sales that show top sellers, stock turn, short term profit reports, daily sales, stock levels and inventories. Meanwhile trend analysis gives in-depth insight into customer purchasing patterns to give the company a competitive advantage.
Omnichannel Optimisation
Oliver Bonas Fulham Store
Today, Oliver Bonas operates a fully integrated omnichannel environment that combines convenience, consistency, and innovation. Customer journeys are streamlined through simple customer data capture and a unified customer profile, creating a single customer view across all channels. The retailer offers Click & Collect and Endless Aisles, allowing in-store staff to order out-of-stock items directly to the customer’s home. The business also sells across multiple marketplaces, extending reach and accessibility. Gift cards are supported seamlessly both in-store and online, reinforcing brand loyalty and ease of purchase.
“We are a dynamic company keen to grow and we depend on Futura’s stability and strength to allow us to expand steadily. As well as relying on its software, what’s more important for me is the knowledge that we can have conversations with one of the team at midnight on a Friday night and fix things so that when stores open on a Saturday morning, the tills are up and running and when we pick up the phone there is always someone that will try and help us,” Tim Hollidge concluded.
With continued investment in retail technology, digital engagement, and sustainability, Oliver Bonas is poised to lead the future of omnichannel retail.
