Ongoing innovation at Men's Wearhouse has led to the launch of its omni-channel inventory program, which gives customers visibility and access to all merchandise within the company's distribution center and its 900-plus retail locations from one location. Now, regardless of whether a customer is shopping in a single store or online, they can see all merchandise available to them throughout the company and pick up any item at the store of their choosing.

W&H Systems, an integrator of material-handling systems, has developed a version of its Shiraz warehouse-control system (WCS) that works on a smartwatch.

Research conducted by IDTechEx, and published in RFID Forecasts, Players and Opportunities 2014-2024, finds that the RFID market – including tags, readers, software and services for passive and active RFID – will grow from $7.88bn in 2013 to $9.2bn in 2014. IDTechEx expects that the RFID market will reach $30.2bn in 2024. Most growth is due to active RFID/RTLS systems, interrogators, and then tags, in terms of total money spent.

There is no argument today about the impact that retail/apparel and footwear have had on the passive UHF market. Estimates vary on apparel's share, but it hovers around 70 percent to 80 percent of the total UHF market. And that includes only about 2 percent of the apparel items sold. In our recent research of RFID use among retailers, the retailers indicated an interest in expanding their use of RFID in apparel. And the tag industry that supports retailers is forecasting numbers between 23 percent to 35 percent growth in apparel use, as well. More retailers will be tagging more items in the next few years.