FMCG distribution · Dubai · JAFZA · AI Enablement
How a Dubai FMCG distributor recovered AED 4.2M in trade promo leakage in six months
AED 4.2M in trade promo leakage recovered across UAE modern + traditional trade in 6 months.
Client: A Dubai FMCG distributor (30+ SKUs, JAFZA-headquartered)
AED 4.2M
Trade promo leakage recovered
over 6 months
from 21 days → same-day
Margin visibility latency
0% → 87% of promos
Promo ROI transparency
measured at close-out
~11 hrs/week per rep
Sales rep time saved
The challenge
- AED 40M+ annual trade promo spend across Carrefour, Lulu, Union Coop, and 400+ traditional trade outlets — with no reliable per-promo ROI visibility.
- SAP data lag of 21 days meant every commercial decision was based on last month's numbers.
- Field reps were spending 15+ hours per week reconciling promo claims manually against distributor invoices.
- Leakage suspected but not measurable — 'we know we're losing money on some promos, we can't tell which'.
What we built
- Deployed Revenue OS as a real-time margin layer on top of SAP — daily API sync + reconciliation engine.
- Built a promo ROI dashboard with per-SKU, per-outlet, per-promo P&L close-out inside 48 hours of promo end.
- Rolled out a driver app that captures outlet-level compliance photos + shelf conditions, feeding back into the promo ROI calc.
- Trained the commercial team on the promo ROI workflow with a fortnightly review rhythm.
What actually happened
- AED 4.2M in leaked trade promo spend recovered inside 6 months — a mix of chargebacks, promo cancellations, and re-negotiated terms.
- Sales team's Monday-morning briefing pack went from 'gut-feel discussion' to 'this SKU, this outlet, this decision'.
- Field reps saved ~11 hrs/week — redeployed to outlet visits and merchandising.
- The FD stopped receiving surprise year-end promo reconciliation invoices.
Tech stack
- · Revenue OS
- · SAP S/4HANA integration
- · PostgreSQL
- · React Native (driver app)
- · AWS Middle East
Timeline
16 weeks from kickoff to full deployment
“We knew we were leaking money on trade promos. Solinify built us the visibility to see where — and the discipline to close it. AED 4.2M in six months paid for the platform many times over.”