ECR Principles & Methodologies

ECRA is the only industry body that brings together suppliers and retailers/wholesalers to promote industry-wide initiatives in the value chain that deliver benefits to the industry and the shopper. 

The Efficient Consumer Response (ECR) movement effectively began in the mid-nineties, adopted in 1999 in Australasia,  and was characterised by the emergence of new principles of collaborative management along the value chain. It was understood that companies can serve consumers better, faster and at less cost by working together with trading partners.

The Australasian business environment is characterised by growing competition, pressure on margins, new retail formats,  global supply chains, information technology advances, spread of e-commerce and consumer demand focused on better choice, service, convenience, quality, freshness and safety. This reality requires a fundamental consideration of the most effective way of delivering the right products, at the right time at the right price.

Non-standardised operational practices, rigid separation of the traditional roles of manufacturer and retailer, as well as the lack of collaboration, threatened to block the supply chain unnecessarily and failed to exploit the synergies that could come from working together. Aimed at better satisfying consumer needs, through businesses and trading partners working together, ECR best practices deliver superior business results by reducing costs at all stages throughout the value chain, achieving efficiency and streamlined processes. 

Industry Challenge

The ECRA agenda and work program continues to be both ambitious and challenging for trading partners throughout the food and grocery sector.  The achievement of timely outcomes which can generate substantial cost savings, greater efficiencies in the delivery of products to consumers and increased value to both consumers and trading partners depends on the committed involvement of companies throughout the sector.  To this end, ECRA welcomes participation by companies and their senior executives in working together to promote industry-wide initiatives in the value chain that deliver benefits to the industry and the shopper.

Strategic Framework

The ECRA Board have developed the following model to guide the work activities it undertakes on behalf of the industry. There is the work that businesses do within their organisation; the business  you do with trade partners and the area where ECRA works - the non-competitive industry area. We follow established criteria for determining the work program and priorities to achieve value enhancing outcomes for the industry. This is detailed in the Strategic Framework, which will be applied to each project as part of the project review phase.