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Delivery Flexibility, Options Win Customers in the Age of Amazon

| Guy Bloch

Amidst shifting consumer demand and a move toward true omnichannel, retailers’ ability to leverage their physical presence is vitally important. Options such as deliver from store, buy online pickup in store (BOPIS), buy online return in store (BORIS) and delivery drop-offs in lockers are a major advantage over online retailers.

The True Cost of Ecommerce Backorders

| Brian Barry

Studies have shown that ecommerce backorders can cost you $15 to $20 each, eroding profits. This includes customer service calls, fulfillment labor, shipping and packing material costs. Also, backordered items often have a higher return rate. Here are 8 practical solutions to help you reduce ecommerce backorders and stockouts.

Target, Walmart Find Fresh Ammo in Grocery Wars

| Mike O'Brien

After weeks of concentrating its fire on Amazon, Walmart is now dealing with a flank action from Target as the latter has fully integrated its Shipt same-day delivery service with Target.com. Walmart, for its part, just launched a $98 per year subscription program for same-day grocery delivery, a service that normally costs $9.95 per order.

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Amazon Makes 10 Million Items Available for Prime One-Day Delivery

| Mike O'Brien

Amazon just turned up the heat in the three-way battle for dominance atop ecommerce sellers, announcing more than 10 million items eligible for its new one-day delivery standard via Prime. This compares with 220,000 items available for free next-day delivery from Walmart, announced in mid-May, and 35,000 from Target ReStock.

The Big Pivot: Why Is Everybody Chasing Amazon?

| Silvio Tavares

Is emulating Amazon enough to succeed? No, because very few companies have the resources. For most, winning the war means quietly striking partnerships and collaboration initiatives with competitors that were once unthinkable. At the center of these initiatives are new collaboration brokers, enabling product innovation at scale.

Largest Two-Story Fulfillment Center in U.S. Going Up in the Bronx

| Mike O'Brien

The largest two-story fulfillment center in the country will be under construction later this year in the Bronx, NY, with a planned 2021 opening, enabling ecommerce tenants to service the New York metro market with same-day delivery. It will total 969,000 square feet, including 595,000 square feet of fulfillment space.

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Walmart Sees 37% Sales Growth in Ecommerce in Q1

| Daniela Forte

Walmart reported 37% growth in ecommerce sales in the first quarter, with online grocery, home and fashion categories as the primary drivers. Total revenue for the quarter was $123.9 billion, an increase of $1.2 billion or 1%.

Amazon’s One-Day Shipping: The Real Story for Retailers

| Guy Bloch

If Amazon owns nearly half of the U.S. ecommerce market, why the need to offer one-day delivery? The reason: Its singular obsession with customer centricity. Insights abound for those able to get past the headlines. Here are three of the most important takeaways that were either overlooked or under-covered in the media frenzy.

With the Next Salvo, Walmart Offers Free Next-Day Delivery

| Mike O'Brien

Firing back at Amazon’s move less than three weeks ago, Walmart is now offering free next-day delivery to customers in Phoenix and Las Vegas, with plans to expand to Southern California within days and 75% of the U.S. population by the end of the year. Walmart’s deal is mostly free: There’s a $35 order value threshold to qualify.