Clarins Doubles Productivity with Scallog-Diagma Project

Winning new markets and absorbing activity peaks are challenges Clarins has been overcoming for two years at its Glisy distribution center, near Amiens, France. Since June 2023, this 27,000-square-meter warehouse (about 290,000 square feet) has used Scallog's robotic Flexypick order-preparation solution, implemented in partnership with the consulting firm Diagma (see article). Used to prepare retail orders for the French cosmetics group across both its B2B and B2C distribution channels, the distribution center is installed on a 4,300-square-meter mezzanine (about 46,300 square feet) and includes 750 racks, 71 robots, and 12 picking stations. Four stations are dedicated to e-commerce and two to replenishment.

Thanks to its goods-to-person solution, which manages more than 3,800 SKUs across A, B, and C product classes, the site's storage capacity increased by 40%, and operator productivity doubled — reaching a capacity of more than 250 e-commerce orders per hour (160 on average, across all order types).

"Fully omnichannel, the solution allows us to manage and optimize all of our retail order preparation from a single inventory and within the same footprint, driving ever-greater gains in efficiency, speed, and productivity," says Georges Peyrot, Logistics Director at Clarins. "Every day of the week, we process an average of 3,500 retail orders, of which 2,500 are B2B and 1,000 are B2C. Of course, volumes vary depending on order type: e-commerce orders average about six items each, while orders bound for stores and other perfumeries average around fifty."

During the most recent Black Friday, Scallog's solution — running 24 hours a day — enabled the company to process more than 40,000 orders within just a few days, with guaranteed delivery in 24 hours across France and 48 hours across Europe.

Cécile Mansuy, Operations Director at Clarins, added: "In a context of major transformation in our environment, we had to transform our retail order-preparation model within 18 months. Diagma immediately demonstrated a deep understanding of the market and its best practices, along with a concrete, hands-on approach. Their guidance allowed us to move straight to the point at each key stage of the pre-project phase, through to the selection of the equipment supplier." This testimony reflects the current pressure for faster response times and the growing shortage of skilled labor in distribution centers.