Order Fulfillment

In the past four months, we’ve covered nearly 50 unique strategies for making free shipping profitable, from pricing mechanisms and outsourcing to managing returns. In part nine of this series, we’ll focus on tweaks you can make in your operations to optimize your costs further. (Here are parts one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, and eight of this series.) 1. Downsize your…

Target announced last week that it's in the process of acquiring technology from Deliv, a startup that focuses on last-mile batched delivery. Target is acquiring the technology so it can explore new ways to deliver online orders more quickly while also lowering its shipping costs, according to a May 7 blog post on Target's corporate site. Target…

The spread of COVID-19 has quickly transformed how consumers shop, what they buy and what they want from retailers. And many say these new spending and shopping habits will last long after the crisis lifts. These are a few key findings from Capgemini Research Institute’s "The Consumer and COVID-19" survey of more than 11,000 consumers in the U.S.,…

COVID-19 has brought new challenges to every aspect of life, and at the same time created opportunities and momentum for new trends and innovations. In an age of social distancing, D-to-C brands are deprived of their routine face-to-face interactions with customers. While a myriad of products are available online, creating differentiation and providing value to…

With COVID-19 causing the majority of retailers to close up shop, and drastic social distancing measures required for those that remain open, many consumers have put a stop to all unnecessary outings and are looking to their favorite brands for remote service and support during this difficult time. In a new Qudini survey of 2,000-plus…

In this episode of Retail Right Now, Total Retail's Joe Keenan and Kristina Stidham discuss an article recently published in Total Retail Report titled, “Why Flexible Fulfillment Options Are More Important Than Ever,” authored by Steve Osburn, managing director at Kurt Salmon, part of Accenture Strategy. COVID-19 has overwhelmed delivery and pickup networks as consumers…

The coronavirus pandemic has transformed the retail experience overnight. Suddenly, the standard for fulfillment is contactless delivery and curbside pickup. There’s also an overwhelming consumer demand for essential items, such as groceries, toilet paper, gloves, masks and hand sanitizer — a demand so great that not even an e-commerce behemoth like Amazon.com, which was forced…

From makeup and toothbrushes to mattresses and luggage, the direct-to-consumer (D-to-C) market has grown exponentially in recent years and the shopper experience today is unlike anything we’ve seen before — with virtually no signs of slowing. In fact, according to a 2019 report from eMarketer, there are well over 400 D-to-C companies today, and while…

In the weeks since COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, shopping habits in the U.S. have rapidly and fundamentally changed, leaving the consumer packaged goods (CPG) and retail industries to adapt and rise to an unprecedented occasion. Consumers are not only altering what they’re buying, but also how they’re buying, with quarantine and social distancing guidelines…

COVID-19 has changed our world. It’s impacting life itself, including our ability to get access to the right essential goods. It has overwhelmed delivery and pickup networks. Some small, innovative businesses have been able to quickly adapt and focus strictly on curbside or pickup, while larger chains have been challenged to hire fast enough to…