Skip to content
Search AI Powered
Human content, AI powered search.

Latest Stories

Report: Supply chains prepared to meet demand growth

Survey of supply chain pros reveals positive economic outlook and confidence in adjustments firms have made to deal with accelerating e-commerce and changing buyer behavior.

Report: Supply chains prepared to meet demand growth
Supply Chain Quarterly Staff
By Supply Chain Quarterly StaffApr 09, 2021
Supply Chain Quarterly Staff
See Full Bio

Supply chain professionals are confident their companies can meet customer demand despite the pandemic-related challenges of the past year, according to a survey from freight broker GlobalTranz, released this week.

The company surveyed 200 supply chain executives and managers to gauge their confidence in the economic recovery and their firms’ ability to meet growing demand in 2021. The majority said they expect a robust economic recovery, due largely to Covid-19 vaccine rollouts, and nine out of 10 said their companies are prepared to meet demand in 2021.

The outlook follows record-breaking shipping volumes last fall and sustained peak levels of activity throughout the supply chain as consumer and business buying activity show no signs of slowing down. Seventy percent of respondents said Covid-19 vaccine rollouts will help them attract new customers, and 94% said they are confident that vaccine distribution will drive a strong economic recovery. Sixty percent said the latest government stimulus spending will benefit both their operations and business revenue.

The survey also found that supply chain leaders are confident they’ve made the right adjustments to meet the past year’s accelerated shift to e-commerce. Two-thirds of respondents said their company has adopted a successful omnichannel strategy, for instance—a 20% increase over what GlobalTranz found in a similar survey it conducted last October. Supply chain leaders also said they will continue to make adjustments in 2021: Nearly 80% said they will prioritize increasing their warehouse space and expanding warehouse locations this year, and more than three-quarters said that re-shoring or near-shoring supply chain operations is a priority.

Survey respondents also weighed in on some of the biggest challenges facing supply chain organizations, including: rising transportation costs (37%), labor availability (31%), and a lack of resources, such as parts and materials (33%). Respondents also cited concerns about home delivery: A quarter of respondents cited poor handling or service related to delivery as a problem, and 76% said they are concerned about the ability of their small parcel provider to deliver on time.

GlobalTranz conducted the survey in March, in conjunction with communications firm Edelman.

ArticleMoveThird-Party Logistics
globaltranz
ArticleMoveThird-Party Logistics
globaltranz

Recent

german courthouse
Move

Deutsche Bahn claims victory in “air freight cartel” settlement

boxes on a conveyor
Store

Amazon adds Adidas as its latest e-commerce 3PL customer

Report: 65% of consumers made holiday returns this year
Featured

Report: 65% of consumers made holiday returns this year

Industry Press Room

Mitsubishi Logisnext Americas Group Announces UniCarriers® Forklifts’ Premier Club Winners for 2024

More Stories

Just 29% of supply chain organizations are prepared to meet future readiness demands

Just 29% of supply chain organizations are prepared to meet future readiness demands

Just 29% of supply chain organizations have the competitive characteristics they’ll need for future readiness, according to a Gartner survey released Tuesday. The survey focused on how organizations are preparing for future challenges and to keep their supply chains competitive.

Gartner surveyed 579 supply chain practitioners to determine the capabilities needed to manage the “future drivers of influence” on supply chains, which include artificial intelligence (AI) achievement and the ability to navigate new trade policies. According to the survey, the five competitive characteristics are: agility, resilience, regionalization, integrated ecosystems, and integrated enterprise strategy.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

Companies double down on resilience as trade complexities rise
Featured

Companies double down on resilience as trade complexities rise

US customs agent inspecting agricultural goods
Finance & Strategy

Industry groups: Reciprocal tariffs show “incomplete thinking”

photo collage of containers and ports
Plan

DHL Supply Chain expands offerings in returns, multi-shoring

chart of GenAI impact on workforces
Technology

Gartner: GenAI tools create anxiety among employees

woman making purchase with smartphone
Plan

C.H. Robinson says shippers are stressed about tariffs and trade changes

shopper uses smartphone in retail store
Plan

EY lists five ways to fortify omnichannel retail

screen shot of returns apps on different devices

Optoro: 69% of shoppers admit to “wardrobing” fraud

With returns now a routine part of the shopping journey, technology provider Optoro says a recent survey has identified four trends influencing shopper preferences and retailer priorities.

First, 54% of retailers are looking for ways to increase their financial recovery from returns. That’s because the cost to return a purchase averages 27% of the purchase price, which erases as much as 50% of the sales margin. But consumers have their own interests in mind: 76% of shoppers admit they’ve embellished or exaggerated the return reason to avoid a fee, a 39% increase from 2023 to 204.

Keep ReadingShow less
robots carry goods through a warehouse

Fortna: rethink your distribution strategy for 2025

Facing an evolving supply chain landscape in 2025, companies are being forced to rethink their distribution strategies to cope with challenges like rising cost pressures, persistent labor shortages, and the complexities of managing SKU proliferation.

But according to the systems integrator Fortna, businesses can remain competitive if they focus on five core areas:

Keep ReadingShow less
artistic image of a building roof

BCG: tariffs would accelerate change in global trade flows

Geopolitical rivalries, alliances, and aspirations are rewiring the global economy—and the imposition of new tariffs on foreign imports by the U.S. will accelerate that process, according to an analysis by Boston Consulting Group (BCG).

Without a broad increase in tariffs, world trade in goods will keep growing at an average of 2.9% annually for the next eight years, the firm forecasts in its report, “Great Powers, Geopolitics, and the Future of Trade.” But the routes goods travel will change markedly as North America reduces its dependence on China and China builds up its links with the Global South, which is cementing its power in the global trade map.

Keep ReadingShow less
woman shopper with data

RILA shares four-point policy agenda for 2025

As 2025 continues to bring its share of market turmoil and business challenges, the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) has stayed clear on its four-point policy agenda for the coming year.

That strategy is described by RILA President Brian Dodge in a document titled “2025 Retail Public Policy Agenda,” which begins by describing leading retailers as “dynamic and multifaceted businesses that begin on Main Street and stretch across the world to bring high value and affordable consumer goods to American families.”

Keep ReadingShow less
Copyright ©2025.