Douce musique pour GS1

18.03.09

Dans une récente intervention la ministre du commerce du gouvernement suédois, Ewa Björling, a célébré la contribution du code à barres à l’économie suédoise, réduction des couts mais aussi diversité des produits dans les gondoles et la diminution des ruptures de stocks. La ministre en tire également des enseignements sur l’implication du secteur privé dans la standardisation, reconnaissant que le développement de standards ne doit pas être une prérogative réservée à la puissance publique.

“...Another example of successful global standardisation is the barcodes found on practically all the items we buy. Within this area we have agreed on a standard for the codes and global system for allocating series of article numbers.

Barcodes have enabled a significant rationalisation of goods distribution at all stages. In a study by the Swedish Retail Institute, the gains in Sweden attributable to the system have been estimated to between five and 10 billion Swedish crowns [€ 0.5 to 1 billion] per year -- just in FMCG retail. To this can be added gains made in other retail sectors, the public sector, and other business areas. Barcodes have also made it possible for retailers to widen their selection and avoid empty shelves.

Calculations indicate savings in the form of lower prices amounting to around a thousand crowns [€ 100] per Swede and year.

A precondition for success is that the standard is globally accepted. Competing standards in different countries or geographic regions would have significantly reduced the gains which we consumers enjoy today. This was achieved without much involvement from national and local government, although public sector buyers naturally participated in the process. This demonstrates that there is nothing to indicate that a decision on a new, common global standard must take the form of a government directive. Usually new standards develop and achieve global reach through voluntary agreement. This is fundamentally a very agreeable observation for a friend of freedom.”

Transposé à la France, les chiffres cités par la Ministre donnent des gains annuels de 10 Milliards d’euros, ce qui représente pour chaque français 150€ d’économie. La prédominance du modèle de l’hypermarché, et sa plus grande couverture de l’univers de la consommation que celui proposé par le format de supermarché présent en Suède, explique le plus grand impact de la technologie code à barres dans notre pays.