GDSN Meaning and Functions
GDSN is the Global Data Synchronisation Network within GS1 and the world’s largest product data network. Since GS1 has developed and maintained a global system of standards for business communication in retail, transport, and logistics. The best known of these is the GS1 barcode standard, printed on whatever you purchase online and offline.
Using GDSN as a single source of truth, brands import their product information inside, and retailers — find and download it for their needs. GDSN enables sharing high-quality product information: to any sales partner, in any market. Therefore, this is a way to exchange seamless product information in time without spending days on editing product information templates for each channel’s needs.
How GDSN works:
Manufacturer/Brand provides and registers product data to one of the data pools it works with.
This data pool publishes the given information to the GS1 Global Registry. Sales partners (retailers/distributors) subscribe to this information at the GS1 Global Registry. The information is being sent to the data pool of the sales partner.
Who Are Advantus’ Data Pool Provider Partners?
We use Edgenet/Syndigo and 1WorldSync as providers/portals to publish this data to the GDSN.
Current customers that require that we publish item data to a GDSN provider:
Edgenet/Syndigo
- Walmart US (domestic set ups)
- Sam’s Club US (domestic set ups)
1WorldSync
- Staples (previously CNET)
- The Kroger Company
- Albertson’s (Safeway Inc)
About these providers:
1WorldSync:
- Largest data pool provider
- Account type (cost) based on annual company sales
- We were unwilling to provide our annual company sales, but to give you an idea of costs, we currently spend the below for Non-1WorldSync data synchronization for Albertsons and Kroger:
- Kroger: previously paid $900 annually (based on $150,000 in annual sales from 2014)
- Albertsons: previously paid $975 annually (based on $200,000 in annual sales)
- Based on past conversations with 1WS, if our sales were hypothetically $1 million, then we would have to spend anywhere from $8,000-$10,000 annually, which is why we chose to go with EdgeNet
- The only GDSN Data Pool to achieve ISO Certification 27001 (specification for an information security management system)
- Total of 136 companies as 1WorldSync GDSN participating recipients
- Has a maximum 48 hour response time according to auto response emails
- 1Worldsync is the preferred vendor for Walmart and their customer list was in line with ours (Bed, Bath and Beyond, Sam’s Club, Walmart, SuperValu, Kroger, Target, Topco, United Stationers, Walgreens, H.E. Butts, Meijer, Costco, Albertsons). To be clear, they are still not a 100% solution for all of our customers in regards to the transfer and submission of product content, but they are working with our larger, more painful accounts.
EdgeNet/Syndigo:
- 2nd largest GDSN certified data pool provider
- Account type (cost) based on item count
- $4,800 annually for 1,000 items
Other Points:
- There are certain non-GDSN attributes that Walmart requires us to provide in Retail Link, so not all set up data is pulled from Edgenet.
- Both 1WS and EdgeNet are GDSN-certified data pools, which must undergo an annual audit to ensure conformance with implementation, operational, security and technical criteria as established by the GS1 Data Excellence certification committee
- If we are interested in looking at other options, there are other a US GDSN-certified data pools providers, however most of them have been gobbled up by Syndigo who is now Edgenet. Here are a few:
- Salisfy – http://www.salsify.com
- A general email box GDSN@advantus.com that distributes to Marketing and Compliance.