On 8 August 2018, PT Matahari Department Store Tbk announced that it had selected Manhattan Associates to support new supply chain processes across its growing omnichannel operations. The Indonesian department store chain planned to roll out the latest version of Manhattan’s Warehouse Management Solution (WMS) in five distribution centres (DCs).
The retailer’s logistics director, Keith Jones, said the system was meant to help it handle the growing complexity of a multi-department, multi-channel business. The aim was for products to stay available to customers across Indonesia whether they shopped in store or online.
The retailer behind the deal
Matahari Department Store began in 1958 as a children’s fashion shop in Jakarta’s Pasar Baru district. In 1972 it introduced what it described as Indonesia’s first modern department store. At the time of the 2018 announcement it ran 154 stores in 74 cities, with about one million square metres of retail space.
It also operated an online presence at MatahariStore.com and a third-party logistics business, Matahari Nusantara Logistik. The company employed more than 40,000 people and worked with roughly 850 suppliers in Indonesia and abroad.
What was being deployed and where
According to Manhattan, the retailer chose the most comprehensive version of its WMS for Open Systems released to that date. It was to be installed at five sites: Balaraja, Bandung, Halim, Surabaya and Medan. The stated goals were better product availability, which the companies tied to customer loyalty, and more profitable customer orders through a more efficient fulfilment set-up.
Jones said the system would streamline processes inside the DCs and give better visibility of inventory and data across the supply chain. He described it as a foundation for building ecommerce and omnichannel capabilities.
The decision rested on Manhattan’s supply chain and omnichannel commerce vision. It also rested on the company’s claim that its software could improve margins in retail environments with high volumes, fast turnover and high complexity.
A relationship dating to 2006
This was not a first-time purchase. Matahari Department Store had first adopted an earlier version of Manhattan’s WMS in 2006 to run its Balaraja DC. The 2018 project extended that relationship from one site to five.
Richard Wright, Manhattan’s Managing Director for Southeast Asia, said the company was pleased to extend the partnership as Matahari began its omnichannel transformation. He said the latest WMS would give the retailer a base on which to build what he called a world-class supply chain. He added that Manhattan and its local partner expected to work with Matahari’s team to raise service levels, revenue and profitability.
The local partner
Implementation was to involve PT Intramega Global, Manhattan’s GeoPartner in Indonesia. Manhattan described it as a distributor of warehouse management and automation systems. Intramega was to work alongside the Matahari and Manhattan teams.
Intramega Global’s website still presents the company as an official Manhattan Associates partner delivering the SCALE Warehouse Management System. That is the vendor’s current warehouse product line for the Indonesian market, and it covers inventory tracking, stock accuracy and labour productivity.
Manhattan has since publicised other Indonesian retail work. A 2023 release described a distribution network modernisation at Matahari Putra Prima, a separate grocery retail group, and not the department store.