A team that’s done this before — just not at enterprise overhead.
SmartPlan started out building planning software. We’ve since moved from selling a product to delivering the hands-on expertise that makes it work — our own software included.
Proper tools and data, delivered by an experienced team.
That background still shapes how we work: proper tools and data, delivered by an experienced team, at a cost a full-time planning hire or a big-name consultancy could never match.
How an engagement runs
Meet the planners behind SmartPlan.
Real supply-chain specialists — talk to one this week.
Planning engagements, told plainly.
What changes when forecast, stock, materials and the schedule finally run off one plan. Illustrative of typical engagements.
Forecasting Success in Fragrance
Monthly launches made every SKU look equally important. We segmented heroes from tails, added launch ramp profiles and refreshed forecasts monthly — availability at launch without months of dead stock after.
Planning Success in Fragrance
A schedule rewritten daily became one weekly plan the floor could hold: materials checked before scheduling, changeovers sequenced, exceptions surfaced early with options attached.
“SmartPlan made a total difference to our planning — accuracy went up significantly, and it takes less than an hour of our time each month.”— Head of Operations, fragrance manufacturer · illustrative
Let’s see if we’re a fit.
Tell us a little about your business and where planning is breaking down. We’ll come back with what an engagement could look like — no obligation.
info (at) smartplanstock.com
Smart access to expert planners.
From demand forecasting to factory scheduling, our planners have run these functions across fragrance, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics manufacturing before — with affordable fees, built for a business your size.
Four planning disciplines, one connected plan.
You don’t buy a tool and figure it out yourself. Our planners run these four areas for you, day to day — from what you’ll sell, to what you’ll hold, to what you’ll buy, to what the factory runs each morning.
Demand Forecasting
We turn your sales history into a realistic view of what’s coming next — so you’re not caught short, and not stuck holding stock you don’t need.
- Turning your sales data into statistically sound forecasts for every product, refreshed monthly across an 18-month horizon.
- Packaging forecasts so your stock and production teams can plan directly from them, split by location or customer group as needed.
- Monthly accuracy tracking, with focused reviews of your best-selling and newest products.
- Regular reporting and review calls with your leadership team.
- A twice-yearly check on which products need full forecasting rigour versus a lighter touch.
Finished Goods Planning
We work out exactly how much finished stock to hold, and where, so your products are available when customers want them — without cash sitting idle in the warehouse.
- Building the master production schedule for every product, run through our planning software.
- Managing stock transfers between locations so inventory stays where it’s needed.
- Keeping forecasts, stock levels and open orders up to date in the planning system at all times.
- Reviewing the data and recommending what to order and when — both transfers and manufacturing runs.
- Agreeing every plan with your leadership team and manufacturing partners before it goes live.
- Giving your manufacturing partners a rolling 12–18 month forecast so they can plan capacity.
Raw Materials Planning
We make sure the materials you need are ordered in time to keep production running — without buying more than you actually need.
- Building monthly plans for the raw materials and components behind your finished goods, so stock is there when production needs it.
- Recommending order quantities and timing that cover demand without tying up cash in excess stock.
- Looking for opportunities to reduce raw material working capital wherever we can.
- Giving your suppliers a rolling 12–18 month forecast so they can plan their own capacity.
- Regular supplier reviews to agree lead times, order quantities and other planning parameters.
- Ongoing data checks to keep planning parameters accurate and up to date.
Factory Scheduling
We turn the plan into a realistic day-to-day production schedule, so orders ship on time and your team isn’t rewriting the plan every morning.
- Monthly plans that balance demand against production line capacity, flagging any shortages or excess ahead of time.
- Recommended actions to keep every line on track to meet forecasted demand.
- A detailed production schedule for the next 0–8 weeks, refreshed weekly, with firm orders locked in for the next 1–4 weeks.
- Support with final line sequencing where it’s needed.
- Order book management, including tracking back orders and helping resolve the issues behind them.
- Dashboards and metrics covering on-time-in-full delivery, line and facility performance, and orders held up by material availability.
- Agreed reporting and review cycles with your leadership team, and with your customers where needed.
Let’s see if we’re a fit.
Tell us where planning is breaking down — we’ll come back with what an engagement could look like. No obligation.
Built for fragrance, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.
We don’t plan for everyone. We work with manufacturers in three industries where getting the plan wrong is expensive.
Fragrance
For a fragrance house, a late ingredient isn’t a footnote — it’s a missed launch date, in front of retail partners who won’t wait. Long lead times on rare ingredients, strict minimum order quantities, and a supply base with little room for error make timing the whole game. We plan around those realities, so your launch calendar holds.
Pharmaceuticals
Pharmaceutical manufacturing runs on strict, approved processes and suppliers you can’t simply swap out to hit a number. We build plans that respect those constraints, and still hold up when a major contract win or a shelf-life deadline changes what you need to produce overnight.
Cosmetics
Cosmetics ranges juggle constant shade and formula variations, tight retail launch windows, and packaging that’s ordered months ahead of the product going inside it. One delayed component can hold up an entire seasonal range. We plan around those pressures, so your range launches complete, not piecemeal.
These three are where we specialise, but the underlying planning approach applies to any business that runs on demand forecasting, inventory and production planning. If that’s you, we’d still like to hear from you.
Four planning disciplines, run for you.
You don’t buy a tool and figure it out yourself. Our planners run these four areas for you, day to day — from what you’ll sell, to what you’ll hold, to what you’ll buy, to what the factory runs each morning.
Demand Forecasting
We turn your sales history into a realistic view of what’s coming next — so you’re not caught short, and not stuck holding stock you don’t need.
- Turning your sales data into statistically sound forecasts for every product, refreshed monthly across an 18-month horizon.
- Packaging forecasts so your stock and production teams can plan directly from them, split by location or customer group as needed.
- Monthly accuracy tracking, with focused reviews of your best-selling and newest products.
- Regular reporting and review calls with your leadership team.
- A twice-yearly check on which products need full forecasting rigour versus a lighter touch.
Finished Goods Planning
We work out exactly how much finished stock to hold, and where, so your products are available when customers want them — without cash sitting idle in the warehouse.
- Building the master production schedule for every product, run through our planning software.
- Managing stock transfers between locations so inventory stays where it’s needed.
- Keeping forecasts, stock levels and open orders up to date in the planning system at all times.
- Reviewing the data and recommending what to order and when — both transfers and manufacturing runs.
- Agreeing every plan with your leadership team and manufacturing partners before it goes live.
- Giving your manufacturing partners a rolling 12–18 month forecast so they can plan capacity.
Raw Materials Planning
We make sure the materials you need are ordered in time to keep production running — without buying more than you actually need.
- Building monthly plans for the raw materials and components behind your finished goods, so stock is there when production needs it.
- Recommending order quantities and timing that cover demand without tying up cash in excess stock.
- Looking for opportunities to reduce raw material working capital wherever we can.
- Giving your suppliers a rolling 12–18 month forecast so they can plan their own capacity.
- Regular supplier reviews to agree lead times, order quantities and other planning parameters.
- Ongoing data checks to keep planning parameters accurate and up to date.
Factory Scheduling
We turn the plan into a realistic day-to-day production schedule, so orders ship on time and your team isn’t rewriting the plan every morning.
- Monthly plans that balance demand against production line capacity, flagging any shortages or excess ahead of time.
- Recommended actions to keep every line on track to meet forecasted demand.
- A detailed production schedule for the next 0–8 weeks, refreshed weekly, with firm orders locked in for the next 1–4 weeks.
- Support with final line sequencing where it’s needed.
- Order book management, including tracking back orders and helping resolve the issues behind them.
- Dashboards and metrics covering on-time-in-full delivery, line and facility performance, and orders held up by material availability.
- Agreed reporting and review cycles with your leadership team, and with your customers where needed.
One plan, four disciplines.
Tell us where it hurts most today — we’ll scope the engagement around that.
Enterprise-grade planning, at a price an SME can carry.
Good planning is specialist work — not a spreadsheet you update once a month. Most SMEs can’t justify hiring for it full-time, and big consultancies price it for a multinational budget. We built SmartPlan differently.
A team of experienced planners, priced for a business your size.
Outsourced, not just staffed
You’re not hiring a temp for you to manage. We own the planning process end-to-end, work to your calendar, and are accountable for the result — the same as any other function you outsource.
Experienced planners, not trainees
Every engagement is staffed by planners who’ve worked in these industries before — not graduates learning on your account.
Senior expertise, SME pricing
Our delivery model strips out the overhead the big firms carry, so you get senior planning capability without the enterprise-consulting price tag.
Built on real planning software
We started out building our own planning software, so we plan with proper tools and data — not spreadsheet guesswork. Use our software, or we’ll work inside whatever systems you already have.
What good planning delivers.
Fees — from £2,000 / month
A fraction of the cost of a single in-house planner. A firm quote follows a short scoping exercise.
Terms & Conditions
Website terms of use for SmartPlan, operated by Maine Work Smart Ltd.
WEBSITE TERMS OF USE
1. Introduction
1.1 This website is owned and operated by Maine Work Smart Ltd. Our company information is at the end of this document.
1.2 Please read these terms and conditions carefully. They replace any previous versions. Please print or save these terms for future use as we cannot guarantee that they will remain accessible on our website in future. They are available in English only.
1.3 These terms and conditions are a contract between you and us covering use of our website. The licensing of our software is subject to separate terms and conditions.
1.4 Where we refer to “Consumer” below we mean an individual acting for purposes which are wholly or mainly outside that person’s trade, business, craft or profession.
2. Changing these terms and conditions
2.1 We may change these terms and conditions by posting the revised version on our website at any time. Please check our website from time to time. You will be bound by the new terms if you continue to use our website after the effective date shown.
3. Things you can’t do on our site
3.1 You agree not to do any of the following in connection with our website:
- break the law or infringe anyone else’s rights;
- use our website to help you compete with us or to infringe our rights;
- disrupt our website, e.g., spam, viruses or phishing;
- interfere with or damage our website or gain unauthorised access to any part of our system, data, passwords or otherwise;
- intercept or modify communications;
- impose an unreasonable load on our website;
- get around any security features including those designed to stop copying of content; or
- attempt, encourage or assist any of the above.
4. Content on our site
4.1 We do not guarantee that any general guidance or similar information that we may make available on our website is accurate or up to date or relevant to you. You rely on it at your own risk.
4.2 We are allowed (without telling you) to reject, suspend, alter, remove or delete content for any reason and to disclose to the police or other relevant authorities or to a complainant any content or behaviour provided we are legally permitted to do so.
5. Other peoples’ services / advertising / websites
5.1 We may display other peoples’ services, advertising and/or links to other websites. We do not recommend or endorse, nor are we legally responsible for, any of these. You use them at your own risk.
6. If you create an account on our site
6.1 If we permit you to create an account on our website, this is for your personal use only. You must not allow anyone else to use your account. You agree to take reasonable care to keep your login information confidential and to tell us immediately of any apparent breach of security such as loss or misuse of a password. You are responsible for other people who use your account or identity (unless and to the extent that we are at fault).
6.2 We are entitled at any time for any reason and with or without notice to close your account on our site and to delete all data contained in it.
7. Restrictions on our legal responsibility
7.1 Nothing in this agreement in any way limits or excludes our liability for negligence causing death or personal injury or for fraudulent misrepresentation or for anything which may not legally be excluded or limited. In this section, any reference to us includes our employees and agents, who have the right to enforce this agreement.
7.2 If you are a Consumer, we are not responsible for any loss or damage where:
- there is no breach of a legal duty owed to you by us;
- such loss or damage was not reasonably foreseeable (meaning it was not an obvious consequence of our breach or not contemplated by you and us at the time we entered into this contract);
- (and to the extent that) such loss or damage is your fault, for example by not complying with this agreement; or
- such loss or damage relates to a business.
7.3 If you are a Consumer, you will be responsible to us for any reasonably foreseeable loss or damage we suffer (including claims made by other people) resulting from your breach of this agreement.
7.4 The following clauses apply only if you are a business:
- In no event (including our own negligence) will we be liable for any of the following (even if we have been advised of the possibility of any such losses): economic losses (including, without limit, loss of revenues, profits, contracts, business or anticipated savings); or loss of goodwill or reputation; or special, indirect or consequential losses; or damage to or loss of data.
- You will indemnify us against all claims and liabilities directly or indirectly related to your use of the website and/or breach of this agreement.
- We shall have no liability of any kind for any losses or damage to the extent that they result from your breach of this agreement.
- To the extent allowed by law, you and we exclude all terms, whether imposed by statute or by law or otherwise, that are not expressly stated in this agreement.
8. Intellectual property rights
8.1 The intellectual property rights in all material used on or in connection with our website are owned by us or our suppliers or partners. For your personal and internal business use only, you may view such material on your device. You must not otherwise use such material including copying, publishing, selling or altering it or taking extracts from it without our specific prior written consent.
8.2 Just to be clear – you must not collect, scrape, harvest, frame or deep-link to any information on our website without our specific prior written consent.
8.3 If you publish any content on our site (including reviews) or provide us with any ideas or suggestions, you allow us at no cost, and perpetually, to use and adapt all or part of such material however we wish, both on our own website and also, for marketing purposes, on other channels including different websites, social media and emails. You give us the right to take any legal action we think necessary if there is an infringement of the intellectual property rights in your content.
9. If our website doesn’t work properly
9.1 We do not guarantee that our website will be uninterrupted or error-free and we are not responsible for any losses arising from such errors or interruptions. We are entitled, without notice and without liability (a) to suspend the website for repair, maintenance, improvement or other technical reason and (b) to make changes to our website.
10. Things we can’t control
10.1 We are not liable for failure to perform or delay in performing any obligation under this agreement if the failure or delay is caused by any circumstances beyond our reasonable control including third party telecommunication failures and epidemics/pandemics.
11. Your personal information – see our privacy policy
11.1 You agree that we can deal with your personal information in accordance with our Privacy Policy which may change from time to time.
12. English law and courts
12.1 These terms and conditions are covered by English law and any disputes will be decided only by the courts of the United Kingdom. If you are a Consumer, you will benefit from any mandatory provisions of the law of the country in which you are resident. Nothing in these terms and conditions affects your rights as a Consumer to rely on such mandatory provisions of local law.
13. General but important information
13.1 We may send all notices under this agreement by email to the most recent email address you have given us. You can send notices to our email address shown below. Headings used in this agreement are for information and not binding. If any part of this agreement is ineffective or unenforceable for any reason, the rest of the agreement will still apply. If either of us overlooks any breach of this agreement by the other, it can still be actioned later. We may transfer this agreement to someone else but this will not affect your rights or obligations. A person who is not a party to this agreement can’t enforce it unless the agreement says otherwise.
14. Complaints
14.1 If you have any complaints, please contact us via the contact details shown below.
15. Information about us
15.1 Company name: Maine Work Smart Ltd
15.2 Country of incorporation: England and Wales
15.3 Registered number: 13544732
15.4 Registered office and trading address: 50 Stile Hall Gardens, London, London, W4 3BU, England
15.5 Contact email address: info (at) smartplanstock.com
15.6 Other contact information: See our website contact page
15.7 VAT number: GB 388 8568 14
Privacy Policy
How Maine Work Smart Ltd (trading as SmartPlan) collects, uses and looks after personal information.
PRIVACY AND COOKIES POLICY
This page is the privacy notice. Cookie use is covered in more detail in our Cookie Policy.
1. Who are we?
1.1 We are Maine Work Smart Ltd. For privacy queries, you can contact us at info (at) smartplanstock.com. Other contact details are on our website.
2. What’s the point of this policy?
2.1 It tells you what to expect when we collect personal information from users of our website/software. Please only use our services if you are completely happy with this policy.
2.2 Generally, the policy covers only information provided to us. If you give personal information to other people, such as payment providers or other websites, please check their privacy policies.
3. Might the policy change?
3.1 Yes. We will take reasonable steps to give you notice of the new version.
4. What do we collect?
4.1 Information which you upload to our service or otherwise give us such as:
- your name and contact details;
- account information such as your username and password;
- details about your transactions on our service;
- your friend’s information if you use our “refer a friend” or similar service;
- information that you provide for display in testimonials on our site or include in communications with us including surveys and feedback; and
- contact or other information which you give or allow us to use for newsletters or other marketing.
4.2 Automated information about your use of our service such as: the internet protocol (IP) address used to connect your device to the internet, connection information such as browser type and version, information about your device including device-type and device identifier, operating system and platform, mobile network data, a unique reference number linked to the data you enter on our system, login details, the site from which you arrived at our service, details of your activity with date / time stamps including pages you visited and your searches / transactions.
4.3 The following information about you may be provided to us by other people:
- Limited billing information sent to us by our payment provider for verification purposes e.g., your name, email address and billing address.
5. What’s our reason / legal basis for collecting the information?
5.1 Because it’s necessary to take steps at your request to enter into a contract with you and/or to perform such a contract. This applies to information such as initial enquiries and to account, contact and transaction information.
5.2 Because it’s in our “legitimate interests”, e.g., sending marketing communications to customers about our similar products/services, managing and improving our service including tracking usage patterns and preventing or detecting fraud or abuse. This applies to information such as contact details, automated usage data and to “refer a friend” contact details and to surveys and feedback.
5.3 Because you’ve specifically agreed on our service (e.g., by selecting a consent box). This may apply to contact or other information that you specifically agree to us using for certain kinds of marketing. You can withdraw permission at any time as explained on our service or by emailing us at the above email address.
6. How long do we keep personal information?
6.1 Until you ask us to delete it or our contract with you has ended. You can end the contract as explained in our terms and conditions.
6.2 We may nonetheless hold on to some (or all) of your information for longer if reasonably needed for legal, regulatory or tax reasons, deal with disputes, prevent fraud or abuse and/or enforce our terms and conditions (typically up to six years).
6.3 We will keep your information which we use only for newsletters or other marketing until you tell us to stop sending you such messages.
6.4 We will generally keep automated browsing information for up to 26 months.
6.5 We will keep friend referral contact information that you supply us for up to 6 months.
7. To whom do we send or make available your personal information?
7.1 To other people who supply us with services, e.g., website hosting and management, payment, customer service, email distribution, e-commerce, online advertising, analytics etc.
7.2 To other users of our service if you include your personal information in a testimonial on our site.
7.3 To regulators, the police and other law enforcement or official authorities to help deal with fraud and abuse and/or comply with legal requirements and/or to protect us or others.
7.4 To insurers and professional advisers in connection with our insurance cover or to deal with legal claims.
7.5 To potential buyers so far as reasonably necessary, in the case of an actual or proposed (including negotiations for a) sale or merger or business combination involving all or the relevant part of our business.
8. Do we send your information outside the UK?
8.1 Your personal information which we collect is stored within the UK and is not transferred to any other countries except as follows.
8.2 Your personal information (e.g., name, contact details, IP address, browsing information) may be transferred outside the UK (generally to the US) by companies that provide us with hosting, e-commerce, analytics, advertising, email distribution and other services. If so, we will ensure that there is a legal basis to do so, for example under contracts with standard contractual clauses sanctioned by the Information Commissioner that are designed to provide adequate safeguards for your personal information.
9. What rights do you have?
9.1 If the legal requirements are met: To ask us for access to your personal information, to rectify it if there are mistakes, to delete it or restrict its use in certain circumstances or to “data portability” or to withdraw any consent you’ve given (e.g., marketing).
9.2 You may also have the right to object to use of your personal information in certain circumstances.
9.3 If you have a complaint about how we are dealing with your personal information, please contact us via the email address above. If you are not happy with our response or think we are not handling your personal information in accordance with the law, you have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
9.4 For more information about your rights, visit the ICO’s website: www.ico.org.uk.
10. What about cookies?
10.1 We and/or other companies use cookies and other tracking technologies on our website. Please read the full Cookie Policy for types of cookies, purposes, and how to opt out.
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us:
- By email: info (at) smartplanstock.com
- By post: 50 Stile Hall Gardens, London, W4 3BU, United Kingdom
Cookie Policy
How this website uses cookies and similar technologies, and the choices you have.
This Cookie Policy explains how Maine Work Smart Ltd (trading as SmartPlan) uses cookies and similar technologies on smartplanstock.com. It should be read with our Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.
1. What is a cookie?
1.1 We and/or other companies use cookies and other tracking technologies on our website. A cookie is an identifier (a small file of letters and numbers) that is sent to your web browser. Cookies are widely used to make websites work, or work more efficiently, as well as to provide information to the website owner or others. Some are temporary “session” cookies that remain in the cookie file of your browser only until your browser is closed. Persistent cookies stay for longer (depending on the lifetime of the specific cookie).
1.2 For further information on cookies, including how to use your browser to block them and how to delete existing cookies, visit: www.allaboutcookies.org. Our site’s functionality will be limited if you configure your browser to reject cookies.
2. Why we use cookies
We use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. We do this to improve browsing experience and, where you consent, to understand how the site is used and to show (non-) personalised ads. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behaviour or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent may adversely affect certain features and functions.
3. Cookie categories
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
4. Cookies we may place ourselves
| Type of cookies | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Logged-in status | Assess whether you are logged in to our site |
| “Remember me” | Remember you and speed up your login when you return to our site |
| Authentication | Identify and authenticate you to help you move easily through the site |
| Shopping cart | Remember contents of your cart and related preferences |
| Affiliate | Track whether you have visited us from websites affiliated with us so we can pay affiliates and assess the effectiveness of the affiliate links |
| Security | Provide security-related features to protect our site, for example to help stop fraudulent logins |
| Cookie notice | Store your response to our cookie notice |
5. Cookies placed by other companies
5.1 Companies which provide us with a service also place cookies. Some of these cookies (e.g., from Google) may involve certain information, such as your name and contact details and/or the IP and web address of the page you’re visiting, being sent to the company concerned. Below is a summary of the kinds of cookies used together with details about who places them and where you can go to get more information and to opt out (where possible).
Analytics cookies: These kinds of cookies recognise and count the number of website visitors as well as providing other information about the visit such as duration, route through the website and where the visitor came from. This information helps us to improve the way our website works, for example by making sure users find what they need easily. These cookies are provided by:
- Google Analytics (“GA”). More information: Google’s overview of GA data practices and safeguarding
- How to specifically opt out from GA cookies
- Google’s use of its partners’ data
Advertising cookies: These kinds of cookies are typically used to personalise ads on this or other sites based on your use of our site, to measure ad effectiveness (for example, how often you click on or view ads and whether you go on to buy something from the advertiser) and to stop you being shown the same ad repeatedly. These cookies are provided by:
- Google (including Analytics Ad Features / AdSense / DoubleClick)
- How Google uses cookies and other technologies in advertising including how to opt out of advertising cookies (this explains how ad personalisation works)
- Google’s use of its partners’ data
6. Your choices
6.1 You can accept all cookies, or essential cookies only, using the cookie banner on this site. You can change your mind at any time via “Cookie settings” in the footer.
6.2 You can also block or delete cookies through your browser settings. See www.allaboutcookies.org.
6.3 If you have any questions, contact us at info (at) smartplanstock.com or by post at 50 Stile Hall Gardens, London, W4 3BU, United Kingdom.
Outsourced supply chain planning for fragrance, pharmaceutical and cosmetics manufacturers