21.05.2019 İstanbul
The Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu, speaking at the GS1 General Assembly, stated that 2019 will be a transformative year for retail sales, “Technology will change the rules of engagement. Consumers, customers, will demand more than ever. Therefore, we should use 2019 as a year for digital moves.”
The
General Assembly of the International GS1 Organization, which develops
standards and solutions to improve the cooperation between commercial partners
and to increase the efficiency of the supply chain, was held at the Çırağan
Palace in İstanbul. The meeting kicked off with the opening remarks of Deputy
Minister of Commerce to Sezai Ucarmak, GS1 Turkey's founder, TOBB President M.
Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu, Migros Turk Co Inc General Manager Özgür Tort, GS1
Chairman and Johnson & Johnson Vice President Kathyn Wengel and GS1 General
Manager Miguel Lopera.
In
his speech, TOBB President Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that Istanbul is the only city
in the world that is located on two continents, touching on Napoleon’s comment
that, ‘if the world was a single country, İstanbul would be its capital,’
emphasizing the strategic importance of Istanbul. With its export volume of 82
billion USD, its national income of 240 billion USD, İstanbul has an economic
size exceeding that of 130 countries. İstanbul New Airport will make Istanbul
into a global transit center. For all these reasons, I am very pleased to bring
you together in Istanbul, the center city of the old world and the present-day
world.”
Noting
that Turkey exports 170 billion USD of goods and 50 billion USD of services
Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “This is the largest industrial production volume between
China and Italy. We are the 6th largest trade partner of the
European Union. We are the first supplier to Europe in many sectors, especially
automotive, home appliances, textiles and foods. In the last 20 years,
international direct investments, mostly from Europe and the US, reached approximately
210 billion USD.”
Stating
that the international GS1 Organization has ensured the effective use of
information technologies in supply chain management with the standards and
solutions put forward, TOBB President continued: “So it is becoming the global
language of trade. In the past, dealing with trade, producing, marketing,
selling, was just a job that demanded physical labor. Now; industry 4.0, internet
of things, self-managing factories, self-ordering refrigerators, non-cash
shopping and online shopping. So business life is now digital. Our consumer is
there. Companies also. Shopping, supply and logistics are now digital. All this
will solve the supply chain's problems; it needs a structure to support manufacturers,
distributors and vendors.
GS1
Systems are used by nearly 2 million enterprises in 170 countries. GS1 also
forms the infrastructure of e-commerce on a global scale with the standards it
develops. One of the information standards of the GS1 Organization, which is
widely known to the public, is the barcode numbers on the products GS.”
Hisarcıklıoğlu
emphasized that the world's first standard law emerged in Anatolia, the “Kanunname-i
İhtisab-ı Bursa” (Bursa Municipality Law), which came into force in 1502. In
this law; sales of animal products, vegetable-fruit, salt, bread, industrial
products, grain products, forest and leather products, prices and quality
qualities, are linked to a standard. “After 5 centuries we now need to reach
more information and fight information pollution. Here, thanks to the barcode
system of GS1, our companies can easily and quickly access information in every
field, from shopping volume to product choice, from supply to logistics.”
Stating
that GS1's existence should not be limited to the creation of standards,
Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “The development of systems to be a solution to the
companies, the structuring of companies as a service provider; It is essential
for the future success of GS1. In short, both business life and individual life
evolve rapidly towards the digital. Keeping up with technology, transforming
the supply chain is a must for all of us. Because 2019 will be a transformative
year for retail sales. Technology will change the rules of engagement. Consumers,
customers, will demand more than ever. Therefore, we should use 2019 as a year for
digital moves.”
- Deputy Minister of Foreign
Affairs Uçarmak
Deputy
Foreign Minister Sezai Uçarmak informed participants about the solutions
offered by GS1.
Stating
that the Ministry is in every facet of trade, Uçarmak stated that the
Ministry of Trade ensures the import, control, market surveillance and coordination
of the market.
Uçarmak
stated that GS1 solutions are used in many areas of interest of the Ministry of
Commerce, said, “In warehouses as well as in the supply chain of goods subject
to customs, the barcode system has been implemented very successfully. We are
trying to find appropriate solutions regarding the field of retail trade
without exacerbating the situation. I think that GS1's solutions are very
important especially in terms of providing audits.”
- GS1 Turkey Chairman Ender
Yorgancılar
GS1
Turkey Chairman Ender Yorgancılar drew attention to the changes taking place in
the world in recent years and ways of doing business in Turkey.
Stressing
that a serious transformation has taken place at every point of the business
until the marketing process, he said: “This transformation takes the global
economy under the influence of a new process, taking us along with it. As an
individual, as a company, as a country, we have to integrate into the global
system and we must be aware of and comply with the standards we are obliged to
comply with from legal regulations to mutual agreements, from information
transfer to product marketing. We work as GS1 to create a market that speaks
the same language with increasing standards. We are trying to produce new
solutions in the face of changing conditions by monitoring the barcode system.”
Ender
Yorgancılar announced that GS1 barcodes have been entered into the BBC “50
Inventions Which Modernized the World Economy,” list.