The second most important aspect of the joint industry ECR vision was the retailers’ shift from buyers to category manages that was taking place among leaders in the industry during the early 1990s. Although the cost saving from this shift were not as dramatic or easily quantified as the savings from CPR adoption, the potential profit improvement of the shift to category management could easily exceed the cost savings from CPR. Category managers in retail chains were ideally responsible for the entire profits of a product category across all stores. Replacing buyers, who were primarily focused on cost or promotion deals, with category managers responsible for both profits and meeting consumer needs required new skills and capabilities. The shift from buyer to category manager represented a new mind-set, for both the individuals in the …