E-Commerce/Omni-Channel

A 21-ft Cactus, Flirty Tweets and Hyperloop: 10 Amazon HQ2 Bids That Didn’t Work

January 24, 2018

Amazon has culled its list of potential sites for its second headquarters from 238 bids across North America to just 20.

Will Millennials Kill Costco?

January 23, 2018

The Washington Post

There’s a Costco to one side of Gwendolyn Hammer’s house and a Sam’s Club to the other. But when the 28-year-old needs 12-packs of paper towels, or 36 rolls of toilet paper, she heads online instead.

Amazon Has Narrowed Its List of HQ2 Candidates to These 20 Sites

January 22, 2018

Fortune

Amazon has whittled its list of potential sites for its second headquarters from 238 bids across North America to just 20, the company announced last week.

Chinese Retailer JD.com’s Latest Gig: Supplying Restaurants

January 17, 2018

The Wall Street Journal

Most Chinese consumers go to JD.com to buy electronic gadgets and other items. Restaurant operator Zhang Zong uses China’s No. 2 e-commerce company to deliver 400 million pounds of carp heads.

Ocado Trials Humanoid Robot Warehouse Worker

January 16, 2018

Supply Management

Online grocery retailer Ocado has announced it will start testing a humanoid robot to assist human engineers maintain its automated fulfillment centers.

U.S. Puts Alibaba's Taobao on Blacklist for Counterfeit Products — Again

January 16, 2018

Fortune

The U.S. Trade Representative put Alibaba’s Taobao on its blacklist for the second year in a row over suspected counterfeits sold on the shopping platform, a move the Chinese e-commerce giant said did not reflect its IP-protection efforts.

Found on Instagram, Sold on Alibaba: Even the Smallest Brands Are Now Victims of Counterfeiting

January 15, 2018

Los Angeles Times

Team Dream is a small business by most any measure. The quirky cycling apparel brand has just five employees. It produces only about 100 pieces of each garment and operates out of a converted gas station in San Marino, where a closet-sized nook doubles as both a fulfillment center and R&D lab.

Best Practices for Logistics Leaders in 2018

January 12, 2018

Robert J. Bowman, SupplyChainBrain

Demand for logistics services is strong. But the industry can’t turn its back on the challenges of the coming year.

Tight Trucking Market Has Retailers, Manufacturers Paying Steep Prices

January 11, 2018

The Wall Street Journal

Retailers and manufacturers grappling with an unusually tight trucking market are paying the steepest prices in years to keep their goods moving.

Toyota's Vision for Self-Driving Includes Amazon Collaboration

January 11, 2018

Forbes

In the fast-moving race to perfect autonomous driving, Toyota has taken a low-key, measured pace up to now. But the automotive giant is shaking things up with plans for robotic van-like pods and the creation of a mobility service platform for shared rides and e-commerce.

E-Commerce/Omni-Channel

The latest supply-chain news, analysis, trends and tools for executives in the e-commerce/omnichannel industry — which consists of companies engaged in internet retailing, including those with auxiliary brick-and-mortar stores. Learn how e-commerce/omnichannel companies and their suppliers around the world are managing the flow of products across all channels of the enterprise. Experts sound off on forecasting and demand planning, supply-chain visibility, logistics outsourcing, inventory optimization, transportation management, warehouse management, supply-chain security, corporate social responsibility and more.