Sustainability Plan of the Year: Target's full-scope emissions goals

This year, Target set ambitious carbon emissions reduction goals and committed to bringing suppliers along for the ride, increasing the impact of its work toward a more sustainable supply chain.

By Emma Cosgrove • Dec. 9, 2019

Resilience Plan of the Year: Williams-Sonoma's trade war strategy

At the beginning of 2019, retailers either waited to see what would happen with the increasingly sunny U.S.-China trade negotiations, or they prepared for the worst. Williams-Sonoma prepared and it paid off. 

By Emma Cosgrove • Dec. 9, 2019

Ulta delays second 'fast fulfillment center' until 2021 after sales slowdown

The site was due to open next year as part of a plan to bring the beauty retailer's shipping speed down to two days for all orders.

By Emma Cosgrove • Dec. 6, 2019

Ikea teams up with Optoro to reduce reverse logistics waste

The partnership will encompass 10 Ikea distribution centers, 50 retail stores and its customer support center in the U.S., with the potential to expand to other markets in the future.

By Morgan Forde • Dec. 6, 2019

Dollar General to open 5th warehouse in fresh distribution overhaul

Growing ahead of schedule, the DG Fresh Program's fifth warehouse will bring the program to one third of Dollar General's network by the end of 2019.  

By Emma Cosgrove • Dec. 6, 2019

Amazon, DHL, UPS gear up to test cargo bikes in New York City

City officials hope the use of cargo bikes will result in reduced congestion, improved air quality and a safer environment for pedestrians. Logistics companies say it will be easier to find parking.

By Matt Leonard • Dec. 4, 2019

Amazon vs. Ikea and the battle for inner-city warehouse space

With space at a premium, how are online giants making the most of urban warehouses — and how can traditional big-box retailers compete?

By James Beale • Dec. 3, 2019

John Deere keeps inventory low, forecasts more cost cutting in 2020

Low inventory levels across agricultural product segments is part of a cost-cutting strategy the company hopes will protect it from continued uncertainty in the industry — along with factory layoffs and corporate buyouts. 

By Emma Cosgrove • Dec. 2, 2019

Dollar Tree adds executive to take aim at inventory shrink

CEO Gary Philbin suggested tighter inventory allocations were in order, along with a new executive to address loss.

By Emma Cosgrove • Nov. 27, 2019

Best Buy launches e-commerce pickup in 175 New York UPS, CVS locations

Roughly 99% of Best Buy customers now live in a ZIP code where next-day delivery is available — up from 80% last quarter, according to CEO Corrie Barry.

By Morgan Forde • Nov. 27, 2019

Decathlon's vertical supply chain approach thrives overseas. Will it work in California?

After conquering the rest of the world, the French sporting goods company is up and running in the U.S, but not without supply chain challenges. 

By Amanda Loudin • Nov. 26, 2019

FedEx expects to move more than 33M packages on Cyber Monday alone

In addition to record package volumes on Monday, Dec. 2 , FedEx expects to more than double its daily average package volumes for the following two Mondays.

By Morgan Forde • Nov. 25, 2019

Seasonal retail workers attracted to flexible work options, report says

Robust hiring forecasts preceded a holiday hiring season that began as early as August for some retailers.

By Valerie Bolden-Barrett • Nov. 25, 2019

Patent Pending: Nike's ship-from-store concept, Walmart's autonomous locker

Supply chain innovators apply to patent what they see as important tools for the future of supply chains. Sometimes they're brilliant. Sometimes they're funny. Every week, we'll share a few.

By Matt Leonard • Nov. 21, 2019

Lowe's to invest $1.7B in supply chain over 5 years

New warehouses are taking the pressure off stores to make customer deliveries — an important shift since a main challenge has been figuring out how to keep store items in stock. 

By Emma Cosgrove • Nov. 21, 2019

Target credits new tech with lowering backroom inventory

The items in the system, roughly 15% so far, show less frequent stockouts and lower backroom quantities than those not yet integrated.

By Emma Cosgrove • Nov. 21, 2019

Home Depot assesses tariff impact SKU-by-SKU

Home Depot's tariff mitigation strategy is a data-driven effort analyzing the impact of tariffs at the SKU level.

By Emma Cosgrove • Nov. 20, 2019

From Santa's workshop to omnichannel sales: Preparing for holiday fulfillment

Santa’s workshop isn’t located at the North Pole — it’s the online boutique, the cozy shop around the corner, the big-box retailer and the e-commerce giant.

By Jan Arendtsz • Nov. 19, 2019

Survey: 39% of consumers have ditched in-store purchases due to out-of-stocks

Over half of Gen X shoppers and 75% of millennials have abandoned items in-store only to buy them online, according to a new report. 

By Lisa Rowan • Nov. 18, 2019

Adidas moves high-tech Speedfactory to Asia, closing factories in US, Germany

With the production move, Adidas suggests the business case is still better in Asia, even with advanced technology and despite the distance from target consumers. 

By Emma Cosgrove • Nov. 12, 2019

Ralph Lauren launches QR-based tracking system to boost supply chain visibility, fight counterfeits

Ralph Lauren's manufacturers will sew the QR tags into garments adjacent to traditional branded tags. From that point on, the garments will be digitally attached to a purchase order and tracked through the supply chain. 

By Emma Cosgrove • Nov. 6, 2019

Walmart overtaking Amazon? Not so fast

Some statistics that seem worrying for the e-commerce giant could actually be a boon, though it's clear Walmart is advancing nicely.

By Daphne Howland • Nov. 6, 2019

Under Armour cuts inventory 23%, sees lower excess product levels

Somewhat ironically, a decrease in product going to off-price channels led CFO David Bergman to lower revenue growth projections for the full year.

By Emma Cosgrove • Nov. 6, 2019

Avon reduced inventory by $43M in a push for simplicity — is it enough?

"Choking on complexity," the more than century-old beauty brand is knee-deep in yet another turnaround effort as it prepares to be acquired. 

By Emma Cosgrove • Nov. 5, 2019

Save-A-Lot adds Amazon pickup, returns to St. Louis stores

The addition of Amazon Paycode allows consumers to pick up and pay for Amazon packages using cash.

By Lauren Manning • Nov. 5, 2019