Articles
E-commerce
Postal Operators Deliver on E-Commerce
Parcels and cross-border e-commerce take precedence over traditional services, such as mail, for postal operators, according to Escher’s Future of Posts 2020 report. Operators also say they need to continuously manage growing postal e-commerce traffic, with a greater emphasis on the last mile and supporting retailers. The survey results also indicate: Postal networks adapted during […]
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Becoming the Next Leading Logistics Hub
More and more consumers turned to e-commerce and online grocery sales for their purchases during the COVID-19 pandemic, adding pressure on the supply chain and making the location of distribution and fulfillment centers even more important.
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Cold Storage Heats Up
Booming e-commerce and online grocery sales during the COVID-19 pandemic increased the demand for cold storage warehousing space in North America, but developers are not building fast enough to meet demand, says a new report from commercial real estate services firm Savills. Keeping up with demand: Developers are not building fast enough to meet demand, […]
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Online Grocery Shifts into Hyperspeed
The retail grocery industry was upended by the COVID-19 outbreak. As consumers rushed to stock up on food and other items during quarantine, retailers and their partners collaborated in new ways to respond to skyrocketing demand.
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5 Actions to Navigate Through the Retail Landscape
Taking these steps will allow your supply chain to adapt to consumer behavioral shifts, omnichannel fulfillment demands, and heightened delivery standards.
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Traditional Retail Supply Chains Tackle Omni Challenges
Distribution centers (DCs) traditionally shipped orders in bulk to retailers or wholesalers. In the early days of e-commerce, most retailers used a small area in an existing DC to fulfill online orders or outsourced the process to a third party. As online demand grew, many retailers opened fulfillment centers dedicated to picking and packing individual orders shipped to individual end users. DCs and fulfillment centers have much different types of operations and cost structures.
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Vertical Focus: Home Goods
Furniture Polish During March 2020, online browsing for furniture increased by more than 200% as illustrated by a 242% increase in online browsing for desks, a 260% increase for outdoor furniture, and a 205% increase for home decor, finds a new V12 survey on how consumer shopping behavior is changing in response to the COVID-19 […]
Read MoreHow Small to Mid-Sized Businesses Can Recover Faster
In addition to surging e-commerce demand, small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) are facing increased shipping costs, logistical challenges from decreased plane traffic and closed borders, and extended shipping times. Many SMBs have struggled to rapidly adapt their shipping operations to fit this new landscape. Here are a few things you can do to recover from […]
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How Will the Future Unfold?
As the coronavirus continues to disrupt global supply chains, Gartner developed three scenarios to help chief supply chain officers (CSCOs) prepare for recovery and make preemptive decisions to set up their organizations for success. Gartner polled 833 IT and IT/business professionals and found that 84% of organizations are facing varying forms of disruption—from slight disruptions […]
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How Returns Impact the Warehouse and What You Can Do About It
Returns have always been a challenge, but distributors today are experiencing a surge in returned items and orders. The cost of return deliveries in the United States will increase to $550 billion in 2020, according to Statista. That’s up from $314 billion just four years ago.
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The Importance of Inventory Accuracy After COVID-19
Once the COVID-19 pandemic subsides and doors reopen, apparel and footwear retailers say their main concern is inventory accuracy—even over improving online order fulfillment and managing returns, according to a survey by SML RFID, an enterprise software solutions provider. Retailers have more inventory than ever throughout their supply chains, and with staff being furloughed and […]
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Sorting Out E-Commerce Priorities
E-commerce capabilities and technology have been vital to shippers’ success during the pandemic, finds a report from Kenco. Of the supply chain professionals responding to the survey, 90% say visibility technology is a “priority.” Other highlights from the report reveal: 24% of respondents say e-commerce is extremely important and their top priority, and 41% say […]
Read MoreRetailers: It’s Time to Act
While 43% of retailers say they’re taking aggressive action to mitigate the effects of COVID-19, 38% are taking only some action, and 19% are taking a wait-and-see approach, according to Digital Commerce 360. Retailers need to take significant action, however, to address the following five issues, says the research company: 1. Consumer confidence: 97% of […]
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We Must Learn to Mitigate Supply Chain Disruption from Disasters
While the coronavirus pandemic put supply chain weaknesses on display, it has also shined a light on where we need to strengthen our capabilities to mitigate future disruptions.
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Vertical Focus: Pet Industry
“Nearly 85 million U.S. households today have at least one pet, up from 73 million in 2010.”
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Creating Differentiation Through Innovative E-Commerce Fulfillment
When shippers work with a 3PL that is consistently investing in technology and new distribution centers, they can increase service consistency and offer their customers unexpectedly fast fulfillment.
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Staying Productive in Unproductive Times
While driving around my neighborhood, I’ve noticed a lot more people putting items out to the curb. Have you noticed this? I wondered about that for a moment and then realized what was happening. People are using the virus downtime to organize, clean, and take up projects long postponed. The result is an uptick in […]
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Agility On Demand
An instantaneous experience. It’s what consumers expect and the environment online retailers face. When consumers are captured by a product they must have, online retailers have only a few swipes and a few minutes until their brand’s reputation is on the clock.
Read MoreLabeling Is Key in Keeping Up with Today’s Supply Chain
COVID-19 has created unprecedented challenges for supply chain and logistics management. Products like canned food, toilet paper, and cleaning supplies have seen a significant rise in demand, while the demand for oil and refined products has slowed down. At the same time, e-commerce is booming, and some companies are struggling to meet the demand. Multiple […]
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