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Retail: Page 348

Facing the Titans: Build Your Offense to Compete with Amazon and Walmart

Analyst Insight: The titans of business, Amazon and Walmart, are doing an awesome job of growing their companies and transforming the way the marketplace functions. They're innovating supply chain operations and how they are responding to the needs of the customer. They're creating tremendous disruptions that are forcing everyone to play catch up. Lastly, they are on the offensive. They are creating benefits for their customers at such a rate that all other companies are playing at a disadvantage. - Jim Tompkins, CEO, Tompkins International

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The Supply Chain Side of Foreign Retailers Operating in India

Analyst Insight: The issue of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Indian retail has been in the headline news over the past few years. However, little media attention has been paid to the supply chain aspects of foreign retailers setting up shop in the country. The entrance of new foreign retailers into India will have a positive impact on domestic retail supply chains, bringing in global best practices, technological know-how and strengthening the position of local small suppliers. - Viktoria Sadlovska, Managing Director, Prameya Research, & Lead Author of the Pragmatic Value Chains Blog

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Retail Imports Expected to Rise in March as Retailers Begin Stocking Up for Spring and Summer

Import volume at the nation's major retail container ports is expected to increase 12.4 percent in March as retailers begin to stock up for the spring and the summer season, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

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The Retail Vertical Comes in Several Flavors

Analyst Insight: For retail, what's on the supply chain horizon isn't one-dimensional, purely best practice, absolutely the optimum, but rather a continuum of distinct models working within several different environments. From a supply chain vantage point, the best retailers are those who orchestrate supplier resources with their own, resulting in agility and responsiveness to changing situations and differing customer needs. - Robert Sabath, Principal Essentialist SCM, Trissential

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Same-Day Fulfillment: The Value of Speed to Retail

Analyst Insight: Next-day delivery is the new normal. And fulfillment windows are compressing even further as companies like Amazon continue to raise customer expectations. But companies wrestle with what level of service makes sense, and how to justify investments. It's not about making every process in the DC faster. It's a delicate balance of revenue gains and improved customer service against investment and operating costs. - Helgi Thor Leja, Industrial & Electrical Industry Leader, Fortna Inc.

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For Many, 'Information Disconnects' Make Comprehensive Visibility a Dream

Ideally, the goal of the information supply chain is end-to-end visibility. Without adequate end-to-end visibility, including all internal and external tiers, the globally connected supply chain is doomed to suffer the consequences of volatility - and in many cases, experience amplified consequences. Unfortunately, most companies still struggle with information disconnects and black holes.

How Good a Bet Was It to Enter an Emerging Market?

This year Western firms' giant bet on the emerging world will come under more scrutiny. Most multinationals are profitable in emerging markets. American firms, for example, made a 12 percent return on equity in 2012, roughly in line with their global average. But having grown fast, profits are now falling in dollar terms.

SAS Issues Demand Signal Analytics Tool for CPG

SAS, a vendor of business analytics software and services, has created SAS for Demand Signal Analytics.

Ocean Carrier Mega-Alliances: A Question Mark for Shippers

I'd like to propose a symbol for those huge new vessel-sharing alliances that will dominate the global container trades this year and beyond: a great big question mark.

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Warehouse Execution System Delivers a Fresh Solution for Perishable Foods Manufacturer

Challenge: A leading perishable foods brand was experiencing high transportation costs, extended delivery times and loss of selling time, when shipping product lines from multiple manufacturing locations to a network of food distributors.

Seko Inks Joint Venture With Secans Global for Store Development

Seko Logistics has forged a new partnership with Secans Global, a vendor of services for global retail expansion.

Adopting the Right E-commerce Fulfillment Strategy

Analyst Insight: Online sales surged last year, and many companies saw their e-commerce sales grow by double digits. This growth is expected to continue for the foreseeable future, so the good news is that rising rates and revenue for e-commerce are significantly exceeding expectations. But there is bad news too - e-commerce is stressing distribution operations and many companies are having difficulty keeping up. Adopting the right operational practices for order fulfillment is essential for business success. - Kelly Reed, Partner, Tompkins International

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