Tim Garcia

Christmas 2013 shaped up as the biggest challenge ever for everyone working anywhere within the retail supply chain and logistics world. The number of gifts bought from retailers — both online and in brick-and-mortar stores — will probably hit an all-time record. Yet, because of a quirk in the calendar this year, the holiday shopping season in the U.S. is as short as it possibly can be — 26 days, down nearly a week from 32 days last year.

I hear a lot of talk about the ways retail enterprises can improve warehouse efficiency, and often there's a basic problem with the discussion: the definition of warehouse is too narrow. To many, warehouses are buildings where you keep your product. They're the places filled with pallets and forklifts and trucks coming and going. But if your supply chain is where it should be, the definition of "warehouse" is a much bigger concept. If a retail supply chain is automated the right way, the warehouse is wherever your materials or products are right now.