Business theorists have been talking up the concept of supply chain as a “competitive weapon” for so many years that if it were really happening, they’d have a well-stocked armory by now.

A 2014 Deloitte survey found that 69 percent of chief procurement officers saw cost reduction as their main priority over the following 12 months. In 2018, the same survey showed that the number had jumped to 78 percent.

Over the past decade, the retail industry has undergone a drastic makeover.

It’s been a rocky start for high-tech wearable devices for the consumer. But the supply chain offers a more fertile ground for growth.