3D Printing is impacting the consumer products industry in a big way. It is influencing every single step of the supply chain and is assisting in creation of fully customised retail products. 3D printing can play an active role in the “made to measure” idea of the retail industry. Let’s dive in to the applications or 3D printing in this industry.
Supply Chain Efficiency
Supply chains are fundamental element of modern retail industry. There is lot of supply chain management involved in bringing a product from factory to the retail shop near to the customer. There are multiple intermediaries between manufacturer & customer who don’t add real value to the product but are required to bring the product from manufacturer to customer. This supply chain management leads to inefficiency and adds to the cost. 3D printing helps bring down the dependency on these supply chains by facilitating printing near the customer location. A good example for this is spare parts. If a machine is broken down, instead of waiting for the spare part to be available, service center executive can download the design file and directly 3D print the same then and there itself.
Low Volumes and multiple SKUs
Stores, stock, locations and shipping costs are no longer an issue. Retailers will have the option to create products in-house on a made-to-order basis. This helps create multiple types of products in low volumes.
Market research testing and agile product development
3D Printing helps a lot in proper market research and in agile product development. With the help of 3D Printing, we can create multiple iterations of product and test those iterations quickly. Also, 3D Printing helps in batch production of the product.
Product Marketing
3D Printing helps in creating sample packs quickly. These packs can be launched into the market to get customer feedback at the earliest.
Advertising and Proof of Concept
3D printing i
n retail can be an amazing means to increase brand loyalty and an effective trigger to the act of purchase (the customer would feel more interested to buy a product in which he invested hiself). The physical product will no longer be the end result and driver of profit margins. Customer experience will matter more than ever.
Custom fashion accessories
Imagines a future where we’ll travel without any luggage and we will be able to 3D print our clothes directly from the hotel room. This idea is actually a common topic of conversation when talking about the future of retailing and 3D printing. Unique and customized accessories will be the norm, and the end users have the power to design their products themselves.
Contact think3D team
With great insights in to the sector, and the cumulative experience of working with scores of clients, think3D can be your perfect partner in using 3D printing for retail. Drop an email to info@think3d.in for more details on our 3D printers & scanners range, and for help in creating custom 3D prototypes. Our team will get in touch with you.
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