You may have read somewhere that 2020 was an extremely disruptive year in every aspect of the retail industry. Ecommerce, already on a rapid trajectory, took off into the stratosphere as consumer flocked online. To take a look into what we can expect in 2021, four experts offer their views and some bold predictions.
We’re at a tipping point where automation is about to be a mainstream focus of ecommerce fulfillment centers. But while automation may be a sensible investment for bigger players like Amazon, that doesn’t mean it will scale effectively to smaller operations. So, are fully automated facilities really the future, and if so, what will it look like?
FedEx is acquiring ecommerce platform ShopRunner, which offers subscribers guaranteed two-day delivery for $79 a year, looking to bolster its ecommerce offerings and bulk up in the battle against ex-partner Amazon, which is expected to restart 3P fulfillment in 2021. ShopRunner, based in Chicago, will be operated as a subsidiary.
With the meteoric rise in ecommerce, consumer scrutiny on ecommerce sites is at an all-time high. Before, the only job of an ecommerce merchandiser was to show consumers what they came for and inspire them to buy. Now, that role is incrementally more complex. Here are a few suggestions to keep in mind for this holiday season.
Amazon and Best Buy are both touting their expanded network of alternate pickup locations to deal with the holiday crush ahead of Black Friday, giving shoppers more options for getting their stuff fast. Amazon said it has Hub locations in more than 900 cities and towns, while Best Buy’s network is over 16,000.
A decline in delivery performance in certain lanes has led Amazon to restrict use of FedEx Ground and Home Delivery for Seller Fulfilled Prime orders, according to the Memphis Commercial Appeal. Overall on-time performance of carriers is already being challenged even ahead of the traditional start of peak season.
Boding well for the holiday spend here, the U.S. was the top seller of goods during Alibaba’s Singles Day 2020, which raked in $116 billion combined on Alibaba and JD.com. Alibaba itself reported $75.28 billion yuan in GMV, while JD.com said its Singles Day GMV was $40.72 billion. Sales from U.S. retailers topped $5 billion.
Amazon is adding perks for its legion of thousands of crowdsourced delivery drivers through the Flex program, creating a rewards program that includes things like a cash-back debit card and the ability to earn access to more desirable routes and slots.
In the peak holiday season like no other, Adobe is calling for a 33% increase in holiday ecommerce sales from Nov. 1 through Dec. 31, hitting a record $189 billion, equal to two years’ growth from a single year, as retailers, carriers and solution providers alike gear up for a blowout.
Warehouse employment is up 3.8% since the coronavirus lockdowns began in mid-March, one of the few bright spots in an economy that has seen an overall dip of 7% in payrolls during that period, according to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.