With a new year comes a renewed focus on inventory and how to manage it. All systems and aspects of the supply chain must match up with customer demands in the ever-present and evolving omnichannel environment. After all, customers can order goods from anywhere on any smart device, and their expectations are that they will pick up their goods, or have their merchandise delivered to any place – on their terms. People want quick results – or else they will find another outlet from which to shop.

Perhaps one of the most significant contributions the internet has made to our daily lives (outside of being able to connect with people we never spoke to and didn't even know in high school) is the ability to find the rock-bottom price for just about anything we need to purchase easily. With a quick search on the right keywords, or a visit to megasites such as Amazon.com or eBay, we can find exactly what we're looking for and save a lot of money to boot. Or so it would seem.