Once upon a time, the retail industry was a safe, predictable way to make a living. Businesses simply had to take delivery
of inventory, stock the shelves, and greet eager
customers at the door.
Sign on for a retail job in 2016, however, and
you’d better buckle up for a wild ride. This
industry is one of the fastest-changing sectors of
the U.S. economy, with companies hustling to
adapt to trends like drone delivery, virtual reality, and mobile commerce. One change looms
over all the others, however: the rush to join the
omnichannel revolution.
To get a better understanding of how companies are meeting the challenges of omni-channel commerce, DC VELOCITY and ARC
Advisory Group, a Dedham, Mass., management
consulting firm, teamed up to conduct our
fourth annual survey on retail fulfillment practices. Respondents answered 37 questions on
their approach to meeting current challenges in
omnichannel commerce and their plans for the
future.
The results showed that in spite of an array
of new logistics strategies and processes, most
retailers have simply bolted their new omni-
channel operations onto existing infrastructure,
fulfilling multiple order streams in the same DCs
where they handle traditional store fulfillment.
The survey statistics that follow tell the story of
why, how, and where businesses are performing
omnichannel fulfillment.
PRESERVE MARKET SHARE
When it comes to why companies embark on the
omnichannel journey, the answer seems to be
all about preserving their slice of the market.
Asked for the top three reasons they were participating in omnichannel commerce or intended
to do so, respondents said they wanted to boost
sales, increase market share, and improve customer loyalty. Those responses finished far above
cost-focused alternatives such as increasing margins, improving ability to rebalance inventory, decreasing markdowns, or reducing capital
expenditures associated with building a new
e-fulfillment warehouse.
We asked respondents which omnichannel
capabilities they currently support, and they
ranked the five options as follows:
b Order at store, fulfill from warehouse ( 67
percent)
SPECIAL REPORT
By Ben Ames
THREE-QUARTERS OF RETAILERS FULFILL ORDERS FROM MULTIPLE
CHANNELS AT A SINGLE DC, ACCORDING TO OUR FOURTH ANNUAL
OMNICHANNEL FULFILLMENT SURVEY.
STUDY: MULTITASKING DCs
DELIVER THE GOODS FOR
OMNICHANNEL RETAILERS
