Order Fulfillment

One of the leaders in omnichannel retailing, Macy's continues to set a strong pace in the industry. The retailer will be able to fulfill direct-to-consumer orders from more than 500 of its stores and is working with 50 percent of its suppliers to stock RFID-tagged goods for improved inventory counts. Macy's is also making major investments in associate training to enhance service levels offered to informed, technology-wielding consumers.

Gap is currently working on a seamless inventory opportunity. Today, the retailer has pools of inventory trapped around the world — in countries and in stores. Gap is now unlocking the power of its inventory where any unit that leaves a vendor should go where the product can be maximized. Capabilities like ship-from-store, find-in-store and reserve-in-store, which Gap will launch later this year, provide opportunities for incremental sales.

Developing a "next generation fulfillment network" will be one of Wal-Mart's key global priorities for this year, along with investing in a global e-commerce platform that will provide the world's largest retailer with common digital technology in multiple countries. Work on the fulfillment network will begin in the U.S.

Amazon.com is now giving sellers "room for error" when it comes to issuing refunds to customers. The marketplace said when sellers refund the wrong order or issue a full refund when they intended just a partial refund, it knows correcting such mistakes can be tricky. Amazon is instituting a standard holding period for all refunds to make it easier for sellers.

Send the Trend, the e-commerce site acquired by QVC in February, has relaunched to provide a broader range of premier beauty and accessory products. According to a press release, Send the Trend leverages proprietary technology — with unique algorithms — to deliver monthly, personalized shopper recommendations filled from an expanded product assortment, including Send the Trend branded collections and selections from QVC's diverse product portfolio of prestige brands in jewelry, fashion accessories, beauty, hair care and skin care categories.

Belk, Inc. is making all the right moves around improving its warehouse and fulfillment operations to meet the needs of its growing e-commerce business.

It's that time of year again when retailers should start preparing their businesses for holidays returns. The holiday returns season is a very important time of year for both retailers and manufacturers. A typical retail chain will process more than 45 percent of its total annual returns volume between the first week in January and the first week in March. Manufacturers of consumer goods, in turn, will get hit with this same tidal wave of seasonal recalls and product returns about a week to two weeks later as their retail customers process and ship returns to them.

Sears has relaunched its Fulfilled by Sears (FBS) service that now includes multichannel fulfillment. The retailer, which joined Wal-Mart in opening its e-commerce website to third-party merchants in 2009, said it's adding new functionality to FBS every month. In its monthly newsletter to sellers, Sears said it was looking for merchants who wanted to utilize its expertise in transportation and logistics by using FBS. For a limited time, sellers that convert items over to FBS will be eligible for a special "Relaunch Offer."

AT&T is adopting the Apple philosophy with a mega retail store that focuses on the consumer and not just on selling products. Opening Saturday, the new 10,000 square-foot store is nestled along Chicago's famed Magnificent Mile. The design of the store offers the promise of a more customer-focused experience than that found at AT&T's usual retail outlets.

Target's customers are looking for answers and connected solutions. Best Buy is looking for new customers, specifically how to reach women and families. So, is the Geek Squad and Target a match made in heaven? Most retail partnering experiments and mergers fail, but the Best Buy Geek Squad in Target might just work. The consumer needs for services in a mobile and highly connected digital world require more than the traditional product-centric merchandising of mass merchants.