Viare / eStar Chief Growth Officer Alison Crosbie shares why Intelligent Order Management is crucial in fashion.
In today’s always-on retail environment, customers expect accuracy, speed and reliability across every interaction. When those expectations are not met, the impact is immediate and measurable. At the heart of delivering on this promise is inventory accuracy and the ability to manage it intelligently at scale. Four in five Australians say delivery is important to them, while two in three don’t return to a brand after a poor experience, the 2026 Shippit Whitepaper shows. This means order management is a primary driver of retention, acquisition and profitability.
To customers, availability is black or white: a product is either there or it isn’t. Overselling occurs when orders can’t be fulfilled. The cause may be operational, but the impact is emotional disappointment, frustration, and a loss of trust. Cancellations, delays, and poor communication erode confidence and reduce repeat purchase. Underselling is less visible but equally damaging stock exists, yet it isn’t available to buy online. Customers see “out of stock,” abandon sessions, and turn to competitors who can fulfil the promise. Both issues are broken promises and both stem from gaps in inventory accuracy.
Inventory inaccuracies rarely remain isolated. They create friction across the experience from browsing and checkout to delivery or collection. Orders may be split unnecessarily, extending delivery times and causing confusion. Click & Collect can fail when store inventory is outdated. Fulfilment delays or substitutions push customer service teams into reactive recovery, handling avoidable complaints, refunds, and escalations. Over time, these failures compound. Customers lose confidence in availability messaging, become less inclined to choose flexible fulfilment, and increasingly abandon purchases. What begins as an inventory issue quickly becomes a trust issue. To prevent cancellations, many retailers depend on conservative safety stock buffers or constrained fulfilment options. While these measures may reduce operational exposure, they frequently do so at the cost of growth and overall customer experience. Excessive buffers suppress demand, reduce conversion, and weaken the return on marketing investment. Meanwhile, delayed or static inventory updates fail to reflect the reality of omnichannel retail, where stock is continuously moving across stores, distribution centres, and fulfilment partners.
An OMS enables retailers to confidently present inventory to customers while maintaining control over fulfilment outcomes. By delivering a single, accurate view of available inventory across channels and locations, an OMS ensures customers only see what can genuinely be fulfilled. Near real-time visibility supports better fulfilment decisions that balance speed, cost, and expectation without compromising reliability. When disruptions occur, intelligent order management provides the visibility needed to identify root causes quickly, resolve issues proactively, and communicate clearly preserving trust even when experiences do not go to plan. A modern order management solution is designed to help retailers deliver consistent, dependable customer experiences at scale. Through accurate availability across digital channels and smarter fulfilment decision-making, an OMS reduces cancellations, improves delivery performance, and strengthens customer confidence. Clear visibility into inventory and order status allows retailers to offer flexible fulfilment without increasing operational risk.
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