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AI and ML in Retail: Help or Hype?
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AI and ML in Retail: Help or Hype?

Top-performing retailers are bullish on artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), with 71% of respondents to a Retail Systems Research report saying AI-enabled analytics will fundamentally change their merchandising forecasting by 2025.

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Five Trends That Will Shape Logistics in 2023
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Five Trends That Will Shape Logistics in 2023

Amidst concern over the economy and ongoing geopolitical issues, 2023 promises to pose challenges to managing logistics and supply chain operations. To help companies prepare for the new year, Anaid Chacón, head of product for Nuvocargo, a digital platform focused on U.S.-Mexico cross-border trade, identifies five trends to be aware of.

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Business as Unusual
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Business as Unusual

A new IBM survey of 1,500 chief supply chain officers (CSCOs) reveals that supply chain leaders have accepted their fate: Business will continue to be anything but typical for the immediate future. The main focus for CSCOs now is to prepare for what happens next.

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Nearshoring Picks Up Steam
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Nearshoring Picks Up Steam

All of the global supply chain snafus that have taken place over the past two years have caused many manufacturers to reexamine their supply chain and production networks. The question they all seem to be asking is: Should we bring production closer to consumption? A new report from Accenture indicates that answer is “yes.”

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Acquiring Minds Want To Know
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Acquiring Minds Want To Know

A new report by Barclays Corporate Banking finds that nearly half of all UK logistics businesses are likely to make an acquisition in the next 12 months as they look to expand operations and become more competitive—the highest figure recorded in the survey’s 10-year history.

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Manufacturers Feel the Disruption Burden
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Manufacturers Feel the Disruption Burden

Supply chain disruptions over the past 12-18 months—including shipping delays and parts shortages due to truck driver issues and congested ports—have heavily impacted manufacturers (see chart). That’s the consensus of Deloitte’s new study, Meeting the Challenge of Supply Chain Disruption, which was conducted in partnership with Manufacturers Alliance. (see chart).

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How Macy’s Avoids Inventory Glut
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How Macy’s Avoids Inventory Glut

Retailers across the country are struggling with inventory pileup due to 2021’s massive supply chain delays. Unloading these previous-season goods has become a top priority for the upcoming holiday and winter season. But Macy’s is singing a different tune: the retailer managed to avoid most of this inventory glut, and reported to the Wall Street Journal that more than half of its offerings for the holiday season will be new.

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Why You Should be Spending More on Your Pallets
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Why You Should be Spending More on Your Pallets

Sometimes, finding a way to operate more efficiently forces a company to examine processes that haven’t changed for decades. Take the pallet. This simple, but crucial, item ensures stable loads and are essential to moving goods throughout the supply chain. They’re typically made of wood and are inexpensive—maybe about $15 per pallet. This may not seem cost prohibitive, but with up to 2 billion pallets in use in the U.S. alone, businesses must examine ways to reduce this cost without cutting corners.

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On Manufacturing Pessimism
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On Manufacturing Pessimism

“Given current economic trends, it’s understandable that manufacturers’ optimism is declining. Yet, increased demand offers some promising news. To keep up, business leaders should diversify their material suppliers and challenge logistics providers to find ways to tighten delivery times. And, to address employee shortages, companies must revisit their talent strategies and implement comprehensive recruitment and […]

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What’s the Most Valuable Logistics Brand?
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What’s the Most Valuable Logistics Brand?

The answer is UPS, according to the 2022 Brand Finance Logistics 25 report. With a brand value of $38.5 billion, UPS has held on to the top spot as the most valuable logistics brand in the world. Since last year’s report, the company’s brand value has increased by 28%.

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Get Ready for the Hype
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Get Ready for the Hype

Industry buzz usually surrounds the release of a new Gartner Hype Cycle, and the 2022 Hype Cycle for Supply Chain Strategy is no different. The annual findings detail important changes in which strategies, technology, and workflows are making an impact. Along the continuum are these categories: Innovation Trigger Peak of Inflated Expectations Trough of Disillusionment […]

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Uncle Sam’s Infrastructure Spending, Explained
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Uncle Sam’s Infrastructure Spending, Explained

With several key federal bills that bring dollars to logistics and transportation infrastructure passing recently, it can be hard to keep track of which funds are going where—and what it all means for supply chain and manufacturing professionals. Commercial real estate firm Savills breaks it down: Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act: Signed into law by […]

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Against All Odds, Trade Going Strong
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Against All Odds, Trade Going Strong

“Resilient” seems to be the key word to describe global trade today. Despite myriad challenges—the aftermath of the pandemic, inflation, the war in Ukraine, a rocky stock market—global trade is persisting at strong levels, according to the latest DHL Trade Growth Atlas, published by DHL and the NYU Stern School of Business. The report maps […]

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