Andrew Billings

Andrew Billings
Is Scaling of E-Commerce Fulfillment and Curbside/Doorstep Delivery Sustainable?

The migration of retail purchasing towards digital channels has been widely reported as the industry conforms to the safety necessities of COVID-19. Now, after rapidly pivoting to scale ship-to-home, curbside pickup, and final-mile delivery to preserve as much pre-pandemic revenue as possible, the sustainability of these fulfillment and delivery services is reaching an inflection point.…

Post-Season Back-to-School Inventory Tips

With the back-to-school (BTS) shopping season over and retailers shifting their attention to the all-important holiday selling season, it begs the question: What can retailers do after the BTS cycle is over to set up stores for a successful end-of-year push? Priority No. 1 for all retailers is to move BTS inventory out of the…

5 Things Retailers Must Understand About Product Returns

Retail product returns (i.e., reverse logistics) are a crucial component of the overall relationship between customer and retailer. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), Americans returned $260 billion in merchandise last year, a 66 percent increase from five years ago, and a quarter of that was during the holiday season. The significant increase in…

Has Back to School Evolved Into a Dry Run for Holiday Shopping Season?

Back to School (BTS) represents big business for retailers as consumers spend billions of dollars preparing kids for the upcoming school year. The second largest shopping season, BTS also serves as the transition into the all-important fall/winter product line. While retailers will certainly be judged on their BTS revenue, industry leaders have another, equally important…