Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Retailers prioritize alternative fulfillment methods

Alternative pickup locations, BOPIS top list of ways organizations expect to meet customers’ fulfillment demands over the next six to 12 months, tech vendor survey shows.

Retailers seek alternative fulfillment channels, survey shows

Following a year of accelerated e-commerce activity, retailers continue to prioritize alternative fulfillment channels, including curbside and in-store pickup, as they deal with shifting consumer demands driven by the coronavirus pandemic, according to a recent technology vendor survey.

Cloud-based fulfillment and delivery platform Bringg released its 2021 Bringg Barometer: State of Retail Delivery & Fulfillment report in late January, highlighting strengths and weaknesses in retailers’ online fulfillment capacity and variety of fulfillment services, along with their top fulfillment priorities for 2021. Bringg surveyed 1,000 U.S. retailers and brands for the report.


“COVID-19 put an enormous amount of pressure on e-commerce, leaving retailers in a rush to implement fulfillment capabilities that met changing consumer behaviors and demands,” according to a statement from Guy Bloch, CEO of Bringg. “As we look at 2021 and beyond, especially as e-commerce is expected to account for 19.2% of all retail sales by 2024, retailers that prioritize delivery and fulfillment operations will see greater operational efficiencies and provide premium customer experiences.”

Bringg found that since the beginning of the pandemic retailers have invested in new fulfillment channels, including curbside pickup (51%), buy online pick-up in store (BOPIS) (33%), alternative pick-up locations (28%), and same-day delivery (27%). And although such channels proved effective throughout the pandemic and through the holiday season, they said retailers report that they need to continually adjust their strategies and invest in new capabilities. The survey revealed that retailers are prioritizing adding alternative pickup locations (30%) and BOPIS (24%) in the next six to 12 months, for example. 

Other survey findings drilled down to specific delivery problems:

  • The biggest pain points when it comes to scaling delivery are working with multiple fleets (36%), scheduling delivery times with customers (30%), and a lack of real-time visibility once the order is out for delivery (20%). 

  • Lack of visibility (39%) and lack of brand control (31%) are the biggest pain points when it comes to working with external fleets for delivery, followed by cost (29%). 

  • When it comes to pain points associated with delivering on time, retailers reported the number of drivers available (29%), dispatch and routing issues (20%), and travel distance between warehouse, retail location, and delivery point (19%).

The survey results also showed that less than half of retailers work with a technology vendor to streamline operations, Bringg said.

“In order to be successful at scale, it is important for retailers to understand that the complexities of creating efficient operations are always much larger than anticipated,” Bloch also said. “There are many lessons coming out of 2020 for the retail industry, including the critical advantages that external support provides when it comes to optimizing fulfillment operations. If these channels are to remain in place as a long-term answer to e-commerce fulfillment, retailers must consider a partner that specializes in digitizing, connecting, and orchestrating between systems and stakeholders.”

Recent

More Stories

hurricane milton rainfall forecast map florida

Supply chain networks prep for delays as Milton storms in

Hurricane Milton was just beginning to unleash its slashing wind and pouring rain on Florida’s western coast on Wednesday, but the supply chain disruptions caused by the enormous storm have already been unfolding for days.

For example, millions of residents and workers in the Tampa region have now left their homes and jobs, heeding increasingly dire evacuation warnings from state officials. They’re fleeing the estimated 10 to 20 feet of storm surge that is forecast to swamp the area, due to Hurricane Milton’s status as the strongest hurricane in the Gulf since Rita in 2005, the fifth-strongest Atlantic hurricane based on pressure, and the sixth-strongest Atlantic hurricane based on its peak winds, according to market data provider Industrial Info Resources.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

robots working in factories

North American manufacturers cut back on robot orders in Q1 and Q2

The North American robotics market saw a decline in both units ordered (down 7.9% to 15,705 units) and revenue (down 6.8% to $982.83 million) during the first half of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, as North American manufacturers faced ongoing economic headwinds, according to a report from the Association for Advancing Automation (A3).

“Rising inflation and borrowing costs have dampened spending on robotics, with many companies opting to delay major investments,” said Jeff Burnstein, president, A3. “Despite these challenges, the push for operational efficiency and workforce augmentation continues to drive demand for robotics in industries such as food and consumer goods and life sciences, among others. As companies navigate labor shortages and increased production costs, the role of automation is becoming ever more critical in maintaining global competitiveness.”

Keep ReadingShow less
weather map florida and hurricane milton

Hurricane Milton takes aim at weary Florida

The warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico are brewing up another massive storm this week that is on track to smash into the western coast of Florida by Wednesday morning, bringing a consecutive round of storm surge and damaging winds to the storm-weary state.

Before reaching the U.S., Hurricane Milton will rake the northern coast of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula with dangerous weather. But hurricane watches are already in effect for parts of Florida, which could see heavy rainfall, flash and urban flooding, and moderate to major river floods, according to forecasts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Keep ReadingShow less
chart of number of containerships off east coast ports

East Coast ports work through hefty backlog of containers

Shippers and carriers at ports along the East and Gulf coasts today are working through a backlog of stranded containers stuck on ships at sea, now that dockworkers and port operators have agreed to a tentative deal that ends the dockworkers strike.

The agreement between the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance Ltd. (USMX) hinges on a compromise deal on wage hikes and returns both parties to the negotiating table to hammer out a remaining debate over automation by a new deadline of January 15, 2025.

Keep ReadingShow less
Logistics activity expanded in September
LMI/CSCMP

Logistics activity expanded in September

Economic activity in the logistics industry expanded for the 10th straight month in September, reaching its highest reading in two years, according to the latest Logistics Managers’ Index (LMI) report, released this week.

The LMI registered 58.6, up more than two points from August’s reading and its highest level since September 2022.

Keep ReadingShow less