We are moving into a 7 by 24 hour world. Sundays are no longer a day of rest, they are a day for home delivery. Amazon announced Sunday delivery in 15 markets. Consumer expectations are being set and supply chains are going to need to meet new demands for operation times and speed. Amazon expands Sunday delivery service to 15 cities, including Philadelphia, Dallas By Mae Anderson NEW YORK — Amazon is expanding its Sunday package delivery service to 15 more cities across the country, including Philadelphia, New Orleans and Dallas. Amazon first rolled out the service as part of a new deal with the U.S. Postal Service in November to New York and Los Angeles, just ahead of the holiday rush. At the time,…
Helicopters, drones, beam me up Scotty?
DHL announced the use of helicopters to deliver packages in LA. Ground traffic is getting really bad to make that a reasonable solution. Amazon got a lot of buzz on their drone concept. It is clear that we need a better solution than lots of UPS, FedEx, DHL, and USPS drivers all covering the same territory to deliver packages. The physical internet needs to be designed and developed. Collaboration is key – at least until we can “beam” things up! DHL Deploys Helicopters for Deliveries in Los Angeles DHL, the world’s leading international express services provider, has found an even better route for meeting urgent delivery commitments in the midst of traffic gridlock in the United States: through the air. A new helicopter service now…
Replace your deli number with your smartphone
Retailers are finding new ways to make shopping in the store easier. Publix is giving customers the opportunity to replace the deli numbers with pre-ordering on their smartphones. How long before store layouts start to evolve to support smartphone ordering? Publix completes rollout of online deli ordering system By Margaret Cashill Publix Super Markets Inc. is on track to complete rollout of an online/mobile deli ordering system by summer. The Lakeland grocery chain began in-house development of “Deli Online Easy Ordering” about two years ago. Publix expects to offer it for all of its 1,077 stores by July. The system allows users to place deli orders 15 to 20 minutes ahead of pick-up using a computer, smartphone or tablet. It is accessible through the “deli selections” section…
Walmart To Go Takes the Hills of San Francisco
My calves were feeling the burn as I walked the hills of San Francisco yesterday while out visiting our West Coast customers. Being the supply chain geek that I am, the view of the Bay was eclipsed by a sighting of a Walmart home delivery truck. These new services always seem to be tested on the West Coast leaving those of us in other parts just reading about them. I can definitely see the value of home delivery here — there is no way I would want to haul my groceries up those hills! Walmart Expands ‘To Go’ Test As Competition Heats Up for Online Grocery Sales By Barbara Thau The battle for shoppers’ online grocery dollars is heating up. Walmart is expanding its Walmart To…
Last-Mile Delivery: New Challenges Ahead
What percentage of your total shopping is online? This past holiday season, almost 40% of seasonal shopping was through online channels. Late order cutoffs, and the ensuing last minute rush resulted in logistical nightmares for online retailers and logistics providers, who were overwhelmed with demand and paralyzed when bad weather struck. Expedient delivery is growing in importance as consumers expect orders to show up in less than 48 hours from when they placed their order. The delays many consumers experienced last holiday season resonated into the New Year, and cost Amazon, FedEx, and UPS money and brand loyalty. Likely due in part to the shipping misses, Amazon is investing in its own last-mile delivery network, circumventing the carriers who couldn’t deliver for them last year. …
Happy National Transportation Week!
National Transportation Week provides an opportunity to thank the men and women of the transportation industry who make sure we have our products and food when we need them. The theme of this year’s week, “Transportation- Moving the World Into Tomorrow,” illustrates how advances in technology are making transportation more important than ever. Online shopping, same-day delivery, and last-mile fulfillment all hinge on successful transport of goods from origin to end destination. To mark the importance of transportation to our way of life, the White House published an official proclamation, naming this week National Transportation Week, and Friday, May 16, 2014, as National Defense Transportation Day. Don’t forget to thank your transportation professionals! Presidential Proclamation –National Defense Transportation Day and National Transportation Week, 2014…
On the Road: Supply Chain Challenges Can Be Uphill Battles
When you see what has to be done to deliver products to the town of Guadelest, outside of Alicante, Spain, it puts your supply chain challenges in perspective. This ancient mountaintop village is only accessible by foot. All products consumed in homes, shops, and restaurants have to be pushed up the hill in carts provided by the town. It puts a new spin on last-mile delivery!
Clash of the Titans: Alibaba v. Amazon
Think Amazon is the world’s largest online retailer? Think again. Alibaba, the leading online wholesale marketplace for domestic China trade among small businesses, has officially claimed the #1 spot with its IPO filing. Last year, the giant did $248 billion of Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV) in its China retail marketplace, more than Amazon and eBay combined. Source: Alibaba SEC Filing That equates to 11.3 billion orders, across 231 million buyers, a small percentage of China’s population. Alibaba shipped 5.0 billion packages on its China retail marketplace last year, more than the 4.3 billion delivered globally by UPS in 2013. Source: Alibaba SEC Filing The Chinese eRetailer has a natural advantage in China, as retail infrastructure is severely underdeveloped, driving online purchasing occasions. With only a small share…
On the Road: Out-of-Stocks are a Global Challenge
On a recent trip to Palma de Mallorca, Spain, I stopped by a Mercadona (I am definitely a grocery geek) one Saturday morning. This particular store was experiencing the same out-of-stock challenges we face in the US. The much-challenged yogurt aisle had a number of missing items, with gaping holes. Luckily, store personnel had product on hand and were rapidly re-stocking from a grocery cart filled with replenishment product. Mercadona is a Spanish family-owned grocery store, and has 13.5% market share in Spain, with almost 1,150 stores. No shelves are immune to the yogurt challenges! Ready to restock.
Walmart Expanding Pick-up Locations
Americans were the first to establish the “drive-thru” culture, so it’s only fitting that this model is finally expanding to the US grocery industry. Thus far, most retailers have attached pick-up locations to actual stores (except in the case of drive-thru only retailers), or built them in convenient locations. Walmart has begun testing this concept with 11 stores in the Denver area. So far, they are seeing high consumer satisfaction with the pilot. The company is experimenting with various options to “tether” online orders to physical locations, making it easy for consumers to pick up their orders when and where it is convenient for them. Next up for Walmart appears to be a “Sonic-like” model, with a standalone depot that customers drive-thru to pick up…