Mike O'Brien
Mike O’Brien has worked in journalism, marketing and public relations for … well, quite a while. At Multichannel Merchant he focuses on the world of direct-to-customer operations and fulfillment, editing MCM’s weekly O+F Advisor newsletter, and programs the annual Ecommerce Operations Summit conference. Previously Mike was a senior account executive for Marx Communications, a boutique public relations firm working with marketing and advertising technology companies. Other past work includes stints as a media relations consultant for a concert promoter, a marketing communications specialist for a pharma software firm, a research analyst covering corporate e-learning and a daily newspaper reporter on every beat imaginable – except sports.
Looking to differentiate from competitors on fulfillment speed, Shopify is offering its small-to-medium-sized merchant customers same-day delivery services – often within an hour – through an integration partnership with Postmates
Amid difficult days for apparel companies, embattled teen retailer Aeropostale as expected has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and plans to close 113 U.S. stores. It joins other recent companies including Sports Authority and Vestis Retail Group, owners of Sports Chalet, Eastern Mountain Sports and Bob’s Stores.
A final hurdle to FedEx’s proposed $4.8 billion acquisition of Dutch carrier TNT Express NV has been cleared via an unconditional approval from the Chinese Ministry of Commerce. The deal has already been blessed by authorities in the EU and Brazil, after an initial challenge last fall by the former. The deal will bring FedEx close to parity with UPS in Europe, or possibly launch it into second place behind EU market leader DHL.
Even when bias is completely unintended and based simply on business rules, perception can often be taken for reality. Thus Amazon did the right thing, reacting to protests by expanding free Prime Now service to minority neighborhoods in New York and Boston, and should quickly follow suit in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas and Washington DC.
Erik Caldwell, senior vice president of logistics and supply chain for Hudson’s Bay Company, was featured in Multichannel Merchant’s April 2016 cover story talking about his role there, industry trends and the company’s acquisition of Gilt. In this excerpt from the Q&A, see what Caldwell has to say about the impact of omnichannel or “all-channel” on the retail world.
UPS reported 10% growth in Q1 net income, as the company touted its ability to drive efficiency in its ecommerce operations and strong B2C volume gains. See what executives said about UPS’s investment in Deliv and logistics moves by major customer Amazon.
Guess is expanding by more than 50% its operations in Louisville, KY, with plans to build a second distribution center next to its existing facility there. The company purchased the 32-acre parcel earlier this year for $32, and currently employs 400 at its existing 505,000-square-foot DC.
MCM Outlook respondents said that Amazon had a major impact on their on their DTC business. This includes the pressure to ship faster, as well as the need to offer free or reduced shipping guarantees – both reactions to Amazon Prime and Prime Now services.
When does it make sense for a company to engage in same-day delivery? We caught up with Jason Acevedeo, senior director ecommerce operations at Limited Stores, at Operations Summit 2016 in Cincinnati to ask him for his thoughts. Find out how knowing your audience, their demograpics and location, and the type of products you sell all play a part.
While there are many clear advantages to using a third-party fulfillment (3PL) partner for outsourcing some or all of your operations, the majority of merchant companies still opt for keeping these functions in house and firmly within their control. According to respondents to the MCM Outlook Survey, 26.5% of respondents said they use a 3PL in 2016, up from 21.2% in 2015, while the rest said they handle fulfillment internally. Of those who said no, only 2.9% said they are considering use of a 3PL, down from 6.2% in 2015.