Paul Boyle, CEO of Retail Insight discusses how online grocery has adapted during the pandemic and the continuing vital role of the store. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, retail watchers and the media at large were quick to predict the demise of bricks and mortar retail. With a swathe of (more…)
Mark Morley, director of strategic product marketing, OpenText, explores how retailers can ensure supply chain resilience during and after the pandemic. Coronavirus has led to one of the UK’s largest retail resiliency experiments to date, with quarantines, shutdowns and trade disruption significantly impacting supply chain operations for 1 in 4 (more…)
Simon Lewis, head of growth at 7bridges, explores the long-term impacts that Covid-19 could have on the adoption of AI in the retail supply chain. Retail is one of the main drivers behind the relatively lethargic modernisation of the logistics industry. Efficient supply chains have become essential to meeting consumers’ increasingly (more…)
Abi Brodie, VP of sales for ecommerce at DHL Express, discusses how selling cross-border can offer resilience for ecommerce businesses. There is no doubt that the last few months have been an extremely challenging time for many small businesses, but those with an ecommerce presence have found it to be a (more…)
Steve Flanagan, head of client operations at Yodel, reflects on how the logistics industry adapted during different stages of the Covid-19 pandemic. Business braces for a challenge When lockdown loomed back in early March, the uncertainty of the situation meant a lot of businesses were preparing for a worst-case scenario. (more…)
Barley Laing, UK managing director at Melissa, discusses how retailers can improve address accuracy and enhance customer experience through geocoding. As I write this article, the Covid-19 outbreak is ravaging the retail sector. It might be a long time until things get back to a semblance of what they were, but (more…)
Romulus Grigoras, CEO of OneStock looks at how retailers can replicate strategies used in different countries – not only to operate effectively and safely during the current lockdown but be ready for a post-crisis bounce back. Be upfront and communicate with customers clearly A lockdown doesn’t have to mean (more…)
Mike Hancox, CEO at Yodel, discusses learnings from peak and how retailers and logistics companies can apply them throughout the year. For those of us in logistics, the four months stretching from December to the end of March have long presented the most challenges. A sequence of pinch points – (more…)
Jo Bradley, business development manager at Packaging by Quadient, explains the latest packaging automation technologies and how they can help retailers scale up during peak periods. As well as more predictable peaks such as Black Friday and Boxing Day, modern retail is subject to sudden surges in demand as a (more…)
Marcus Jeffery, territory manager for UK and Ireland at Ivanti Supply Chain reflects on peak season and the learnings retailers can carry forward to next year. For many, the beginning of a new year brings with it the return of routine although, for retailers, it brings an eagerness as they evaluate (more…)
Abigail Brodie, VP of sales for ecommerce at DHL Express, discusses the growing importance of sustainable packaging for retailers. Packaging has come under intense scrutiny in the last three years. While the main focus has been on frontline plastics like bottles and carrier bags, the spotlight is moving to other (more…)
John Taylor, MD at Geoplan, reflects on what retailers can learn from the Christmas period and how geospatial technology can make it easier to manage With the festive season over, retailers are beginning to share their sales figures for the 2019 Christmas period. Next reported a 15.3% rise in online (more…)
Nick Everitt, director of advisory EMEA for Edge by Ascential, draws on research and case studies to explain how retailers can deal with the growing supply chain complexity. Scarcity used to be a sign of desirability. Although Apple can still generate sufficient hype for customers to wait weeks for the (more…)
Retailers are no longer defined by products but their customer journey. Katharine Biggs, UK Marketing Manager at parcelLab, looks at how multi-category retailers can create long-term customer loyalty for themselves and not just the brands they stock, by creating the best customer journey and experience, especially during the busiest Christmas (more…)
Rob DeStefano, senior product marketing manager, industries, at Ivanti Supply Chain, talks about the key importance of supply chain accuracy. The supply chain is the backbone of business operations although it is vulnerable to myriad challenges. At present, we are witnessing a growing demand for accuracy within the industry in (more…)
Katie Woodhead, head of experience optimisation at Attraqt, writes about how retailers can prepare for the challenges of this year’s peak season. The peak trade season is with us and retailers have been prepping for both the opportunities it brings and the challenges it can pose. Despite the continued 18.1% (more…)
By Andy Kaye, CEO, Bis Henderson Group Even if the UK finally leaves the European Union on 31 January, the bad news is, that isn’t the end. In fact, it’s just the beginning of a whole set of changes in trade and other processes that may occur with bewildering rapidity. (more…)
Today saw Ken Loach’s “Sorry We Missed You”, a film about the financial and emotional struggles faced by a delivery driver in the gig economy, released in cinemas. Mark Williams, senior VP of product at People First, talks about how to manage the wellbeing of seasonal temp workers during this (more…)
By Hilary Rundle, Director at Bis Henderson Recruitment The corporate world may be actively pursuing initiatives to improve gender diversity within senior management teams, but progress appears slow. Groups, such as the 30% Club, are pushing for 30% of women on FTSE 350 boards by 2020. However, indications are that (more…)
John Burgess, project delivery director at supply chain solutions provider Balloon One, discusses the ways how to prepare your warehouse for retail promotions in busy periods. When you’re offering seasonal retail promotions, demand for your products will be high, which is great news for your profit margins. But, your warehouse (more…)