How Top Retailers Strategically Manage Fulfillment and Delivery

What’s the secret to providing a great customer experience? For many top retailers, it centers around four main areas that enable them to be where shoppers are anytime, anywhere.

Rely on proven as well as new shopping and fulfillment models.

Being flexible to changing consumer demand is a necessity. With an expanded product assortment, customers have more choice. Tapping into a network of suppliers to fulfill orders means retailers don’t have the expense of owned inventory or excess stock. It also puts products closer to the customer so that retailers can meet customers’ demand for fast, reliable delivery.

Give shoppers convenient options both in-store and digitally to get what they want.

Digital and physical shopping are no longer two completely different experiences—it’s one experience, no matter where items are purchased. Retailers that offer curbside and buy online pick-up in store (BOPIS) have a distinct advantage. The reality is 64% of online shoppers expect to shop more online in the coming 6 months than they have in the past. Add to this, the fact that 75% of shoppers completed an in-store or curbside pickup in the past 6 months and it’s clear the idea of traditional shopping has changed dramatically. The good news for retailers is that 21% of shoppers made an additional purchase while at the store picking up products bought online. It’s a win-win either way for retailers and a convenience for consumers that translates to increased brand loyalty.

Invest to strengthen supply chain partnerships and eliminate bottlenecks or possible areas of disruption

Retailers know that proactively communicating with customers through every stage of fulfillment is key to protecting the customer experience. Shoppers need to know when they can expect their orders and want to be informed if issues arise. Providing accurate and precise delivery promise dates also affects conversion rates. Consumers are less likely to make a purchase when the retailer gives them a delivery date of more than 3 days—27% of consumer respondents said they had abandoned a shopping cart because the order wouldn’t arrive quickly enough. A strong supply chain benefits from being able to access inventory across multiple distribution points through a network of suppliers.

Reduce technical debt and replace outdated systems that restrict digital growth

Bed Bath & Beyond, a Rithum customer, shared that “Outdated technology won’t get us to growth. This investment [in Rithum ecommerce solutions] is critical because the capabilities we are adding will only accelerate our customer experiences, growth and efficiency.” Digital transformation is an imperative for retailers. To do it successfully, investments in modern technology systems that deliver cloud-based capabilities and connectivity to handle billions of transactions is more important as the ecommerce momentum continues to build and grow.

What’s the best way for retailers to implement these strategies?

As the need to adapt and be more agile accelerates, retailers need a reliable partner and dependable ecommerce capabilities that can support fulfillment and delivery that meets fast-changing consumer demands and expectations.

Utilizing partner fulfillment, such as drop ship, can mitigate supply chain risks and help retailers quickly expand assortment in key categories without the expense of owned inventory. This approach means retailers can stay agile and resilient to keep things in stock and get items delivered to customers quickly.

Thousands of retailers and brands rely on Rithum to order, sell and fulfill anytime, anywhere. Working with us provides the fastest path to growth without significant capital investment. Our expanding network of retailers offers access to millions of SKUs and delivers an agile supply chain that helps retailers boost revenues and mitigate distribution and fulfillment risk.

To learn more, check out the Key Findings from the Top 1000 Retailers Report  here or contact us.