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Your order fulfillment speed and capacity have a huge impact on your supply chain and long-term sustainability. Automating and optimizing your workforce and inventory can not only reduce your costs, but increase your customer satisfaction and competitive edge.
In 2020, supply chains went up in flames, but they’ve just taken a more literal turn. Ocado canceled thousands of orders for their order picking robots after reports of them causing a fire in the Erith fulfillment center last week. The online grocer said it was caused by three of the robots colliding into each other.
Over the last year, retailers and grocers have learned a lot about what it takes to compete in the BOPIS and curbside battle - but some are coming out ahead.
Those that survived a year of stress testing supply chains, deliverability, and eCommerce are now cautiously wondering what lies ahead for the remainder of 2021 and beyond. The answer is both: opportunity and uncertainty.
As retailers and consumers begin to open their doors, what will return to normal and what will continue to expand or change? Let’s take a look at some of the changes we’re seeing in the grocery and retail space.
Last mile delivery refers to the final stretch of time and space an order travels from a warehouse, transportation hub, retail location, or fulfillment center to its final destination. Last mile delivery accounts for around 28% of the total product transportation costs - which makes it easy to see how businesses spent over $86B on last-mile delivery in 2017.
Over the last year, retailers have had their resiliency and supply chains tested in response to COVID. As online orders surged with stay-at-home mandates, companies struggled to meet demand with a decreased workforce and broken supply chain. Over a year later, as cities open back up, many retailers are wondering "what's next?"
There are several important aspects of having a successful buy online, pick up in-store (BOPIS) experience, starting with the obvious: how easy it is for a customer to make the purchase online - all the way through when they pick up the items in-store. Messing up even one small step in between could cause cart abandonment, the wrong item being selected, or customers arriving at the wrong pickup point, all resulting in frustrated customers.
If the rapid deployment of vaccines across the country is any indication, life will soon return to normal. This means that mall-based retail stores and other businesses are going to begin to open up and operate at full or near-full capacity.
Shoppers are no longer frequenting the grocery store for their weekly stock-up like they did pre-COVID. Instead, they’re using grocery delivery or curbside pickup, causing retailers to rethink their space, customer experience, and last-mile delivery.
