Primer Philippines: Tackling Shrinkage at Scale with Nimbly

1Million ₱ Saved in year one implementation

62% Faster retail execution

61% Fewer labor hours

Founded in 1985 in the Philippines, the Primer Group of Companies is a leading distributor and retailer of 150+ brands, including DC Shoes, Billabong, TUMI, Victorinox, Columbia, Birkenstock, Agnes b., and more. Today, Primer operates across the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia.

With a fast-growing footprint and a diverse brand portfolio, Primer set an ambitious goal: operational excellence with a customer‑centric mindset, delivering a consistent experience in every store, every day.

A selection of brands operated by the Primer Group

As Head of Sales and Operations at Primer Philippines, I need fast and clear insight into what happens in our stores. Before Nimbly, it was difficult to see where we were losing stock. Teams are now able to identify issues in real time and address them promptly. This helps us control shrinkage without adding extra work for the sales floor.
Maynard Bulosan
Head - Sales and Operations

Tantangan

Operating hundreds of locations surfaced three persistent business needs:

Operational efficiencyReduce waste and time while maintaining high quality across inventory, staffing, and service.
Brand standards complianceEnsure consistent merchandising, marketing execution, and in‑store behavior across all stores and brands.
Data integrityBuild accurate, reliable data flows to inform decisions, including a sharper focus on shrinkage (loss from theft, fraud, damage, and process errors).

Why shrinkage first? Shrinkage directly erodes margin, inflates selling prices, and undermines Customer Experience (CX). In Southeast Asia, dispersed geographies and varying compliance environments make it harder to enforce policies consistently. Primer needed real‑time visibility, standardized routines, and closed‑loop issue resolution to combat loss without slowing down the floor.

Outcomes

Primer was adopted Nimbly back in 2022, replacing manual forms, scattered chats, and siloed spreadsheets with one mobile workflow that helps stores prevent loss without slowing the floor.

Resolve problems the same day
Primer replaced manual forms and scattered chats with one mobile workflow. Store staff can report an issue in seconds; it’s routed to the right owner with a clear due date. This allows everyone to view progress in a single location. That means less time for problems to linger on the floor and more issues closed before they become losses.
Identify the leak and stop it at the source
Nimbly turns daily routines such as opening and closing checks, cycle counts, and Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) tests into clear guided steps with photo proof. This makes the data more reliable.
Simple dashboards show where shrinkage is likely based on SKU, store, or shift. Leaders can respond to the real cause on the same day, whether the issue is layout, tagging, back-of-house (BOH) access, or staffing. This helps teams adjust what matters instead of using blanket rules that can reduce sales.
Protect customer experience while cutting shrinkage The Voice of Customer from Nimbly reveals how controls influence shoppers and highlights what they value, with 88% of Primer customers praising associate knowledge. Teams keep CX smooth while tightening controls.
Area leaders use live views to focus visits where they’ll have the most impact and coach remotely when travel isn’t needed, saving costs while keeping stores on standard.

Hal yang dapat dipelajari

Nimbly turns Primer’s complex, multi-brand store network from manual, reactive operations into a real-time, data-driven system that cuts shrinkage and costs while preserving customer experience.