Task Force Backs Merger of Exchange, Commissary Systems

The Defense Commissary Agency and the military's three separate exchange services should be consolidated under a single resale enterprise for the purpose of streamlining above-store and back-of-store operations, according to a report the Defense Department is expected to endorse and send to Congress next month. Commissaries and exchanges would remain separate stores on base, officials said. Consolidation would focus on a new central governance structure and squeezing efficiencies and achieving synergies by merging back office and "above-store" functions that customers don't see. Doing so could save an estimated $700 million to $1.3 billion over the first five years, less about $500 million in implementation costs, but then realize $400 million to $700 million a year in recurring savings after full transformation, officials said. Read more about the plan on Military.com.