Target takes on Amazon with enhanced holiday fulfillment, delivery offerings

This peak season, the mass merchant is spending nearly $50 million more on payroll to bulk up customer service and leverage a range of BOPIS, next and same-day delivery options to entice customers.

By Daphne Howland • Oct. 24, 2019

Amazon adds pickup counters to GNC, Stage Stores, Health Mart

The pickup counters give Amazon greater delivery network density and eliminate the most complex and expensive part of e-commerce orders: the last yard. 

By Ben Unglesbee • Oct. 23, 2019

Best Buy kicks off peak season with free next-day delivery

As the company heads into peak season competition with Amazon, and other big box retailers, it is looking to leverage its brick and mortar footprint and the growing popularity of buy online, pick-up in-store (BOPIS) to increase sales.

By Morgan Forde • Oct. 23, 2019

Fabric prepares US micro-fulfillment expansion, partnerships with grocery chains in 2020

The company plans to have roughly 10 micro-fulfillment centers in production next year and a thousand up and running by 2025.

By Jeff Wells • Oct. 23, 2019

Warehouse or store? Picking the wrong place to unpack can cost you

Retailers can see "considerable savings" if they unpack case packs at a distribution center before shipping the product to the final store, though the model creates higher picking and facility labor costs and is incompatible with cross-docking. 

By Matt Leonard • Oct. 22, 2019

Wholesalers concur: Retailers are not open to sharing the tariff burden

"Nobody wants to accept a price increase from the person below them in a supply chain," AAFA EVP Steve Lamar said at the Sourcing Journal Summit in New York City.

By Emma Cosgrove • Oct. 22, 2019

UPS teams up with Stamps.com to reduce friction for shippers

Shippers who source UPS shipping services through a Stamps.com platform can receive up to 55% off of daily rates.

By Emma Cosgrove • Oct. 21, 2019

Walmart launches grocery delivery into customers' homes

Crossing the threshold into the last yard is Walmart's play to dominate last-mile delivery.

By Morgan Forde • Oct. 15, 2019

REI expands online selection with dropshipping

Danner, ECCO and Salomon are among the first brands to participate by shipping orders directly to customers.

By Lisa Rowan • Oct. 11, 2019

UPS partners with Shippo, offers 55% off shipping for online retailers

In addition to discounted shipping and waived surcharges, the collaboration will integrate with Shippo's platform which enables e-tailers to manage orders and track deliveries across multiple sales channels at once. 

By Morgan Forde • Oct. 9, 2019

FedEx partners with Walgreens on returns in preparation for peak season

Customers will be able to have return labels printed and packages shipped from 7,300 participating Walgreens locations.

By Morgan Forde • Oct. 8, 2019

Fulfillment models can make or break retail profits

Fulfilling online orders from a store location had the highest fulfillment cost but the lowest delivery cost, in a recent study.

By Matt Leonard • Oct. 8, 2019

Why subscription boxes aren't just e-commerce as usual

Inventory management and fulfillment strategies differ from e-commerce, and personalization at scale adds new complexity to the model.

By Deborah Abrams Kaplan • Oct. 8, 2019

UPS, Michaels complete rollout of Access Points in 1,100 stores

Customers can opt to ship orders to UPS MyChoice locations in Michaels stores for added convenience and to avoid the risk of "porch pirates" stealing packages from their door step. 

By Morgan Forde • Oct. 8, 2019

Unilever pledges to halve use of virgin plastic by 2025

CEO Alan Jope said the effort will require "a fundamental rethink in our approach to our packaging and products," but Greenpeace is unsure the impact will be quite so grand. 

By Emma Cosgrove • Oct. 8, 2019

Frito-Lay aims for zero emissions at California freight hub

As part of the company's goal to cut emissions 20% by 2030, Frito-Lay plans to remove and replace all diesel powered freight equipment at its Modesto, California facility.

By Morgan Forde • Oct. 7, 2019

Over half of shoppers use subscription box services

Dollar Shave Club leads the pack as more retailers and brands introduce subscription services.

By Tatiana Walk-Morris • Oct. 4, 2019

Bed Bath & Beyond to cut $1B in inventory, hundreds of millions in cost as more stores close

The troubled home retailer will close 60 additional stores by end of the year, but executives hope inventory reduction and cost of good savings will stop the bleeding. 

By Emma Cosgrove • Oct. 4, 2019

Amazon fights back against AAFA's 'notorious market' claims

In a letter to a U.S. Trade Representative, the e-commerce giant said it goes “well beyond” its legal obligations in fighting counterfeits.

By Ben Unglesbee , Daphne Howland • Updated Oct. 16, 2019

Banana Republic, Athleta launch BOPIS services

During a pilot program, Gap Inc. reported the brands received add-on sales when customers picked up orders in store.

By Kaarin Moore • Oct. 1, 2019

Macy's to lay off 78 warehouse workers in logistics shift

A Macy's spokesperson told Supply Chain Dive the closure of the Connecticut facility is related to a new dedicated warehouse for Macy's Backstage outlet stores in Columbus, Ohio.

By Emma Cosgrove • Updated Nov. 26, 2019

Blackstone to acquire Colony Capital e-commerce logistics assets for $5.9B

The assets include roughly 60 million square feet of last-mile logistics assets in 26 U.S. markets concentrated in California, Florida, Georgia, northern New Jersey and Texas. 

By Morgan Forde • Sept. 30, 2019

Rent the Runway: Fulfillment software upgrade behind shipment delays

In the race to improve e-commerce fulfillment and logistics, companies can experience technological difficulties because of the difficulty maintaining full-speed operations during a back-end overhaul.

By Morgan Forde • Updated Oct. 9, 2019

How grocery pickup is evolving

As demand grows along with competition, retailers are trying to erase wait times, improve fulfillment and even reach shoppers away from the store.

By Lauren Manning • Sept. 30, 2019

Tariffs threaten to dampen holiday spending

Retailers have little room for error at a time when consumer confidence is showing cracks, an AlixPartners study finds.

By Daphne Howland • Sept. 27, 2019