Carlos Castelán is the Founder & Managing Director at The Navio Group, a boutique consulting firm based in Minneapolis, MN, helping retailers accelerate transformations. Carlos first started working on the Catalant platform – at the time HourlyNerd – six years ago and over time has expanded from a solo practice to a small firm.
There’s a broader shift going from store shopping and online to a blend of the two. A much faster and tighter supply chain is critical. If you have that speed, it becomes easier for customers to shop with you. Speed really helps from a top of the line perspective.
The holiday season is going to be a test of retailers’ supply chains and operational capabilities. With shortages of many key components for manufacturers as well as labor shortages…retailers are facing a variety of different headwinds across different fronts. The products they want to sell will likely be unavailable.
A lot of the time, demand planning relies on historical measures for accuracy.
Historical data isn't worthless, but it won't work alone in times of unpredictable demand.
You may have to do things differently this year.
By having a supply chain that looks at in-store and warehouse inventory as a whole, the retailer says it can strengthen its margins, and get items to customers quicker and in the ways they prefer.