The influence of vendor managed inventory on inventory control in supermarkets: a case study of selected supermarkets in the divisions of Kampala district

Abstract

The overall goal of this research study was to examine the influence of Vendor Managed Inventory on Inventory control focusing mainly on the products of Crown Beverage Limited in selected supermarkets in Kampala district. The study was conducted objectively by assessing the effect of inventory planning, information systems application, and Supplier- Customer collaborations on inventory control of Supermarkets in Kampala district. A cross sectional survey design was implemented in the research which included using both qualitative approach and quantitative qualitative approach. The study population involved staff members from selected supermarkets within the divisions of Kampala. The size for the sample of the research was 144 respondents. For response selection, the study employed purposive sampling technique and simple random and technique. The analysis involved using frequency tables, descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, regression analysis, and thematic analysis for qualitative. The regression analysis indicated that inventory planning had a significant and positive effect on inventory control of supermarkets in the divisions of Kampala (p<0.05). The findings of the study indicated that information systems application had a significant positive effect on inventory control at a significance level of 5%. The research study results also revealed that Supplier- Customer collaborations positively and significantly affect inventory control of the supermarkets in the divisions of Kampala (p<0.05). The study concluded that Vendor managed inventory is an integral aspect for improving Inventory control of supermarkets in the divisions of Kampala. In recommendation, it is suggested that there should be more efforts in demand forecasting to determine the estimated sales and supplies required, supermarkets are recommended to continue with the best practice of positioning inventory where the products can easily be accessed by customers since it was found to be crucial, and there is need to ensure that there is electronic supply of information sharing between Crown Beverages Limited and all the supermarket customers in all the divisions of Kampala among others.