Harry & David DC a Big Deal in Ohio

| MCM staff

Harry & David’s largest distribution center is about to get a little bigger: The multichannel retailer best known for its Moose Munch candy mix and its Royal Riviera pears is adding 45,000 sq.-ft. to its Hebron, OH-based facility. The $16 million expansion will be completed in fall 2008.

Batching Orders Can Cut Down on Travel

| Sam Flanders

As your operation grows, the type of order selection vehicles that will work best for you may change. Growth often means increasing numbers of SKUs, and larger on-hand quantities. It is not uncommon for shelving storage requirements to grow to cases on pallet rack shelving, and then to full pallet loads of a single SKU. In a business where items are constantly added and changing, you may find that SKUs will proliferate. All of these factors can combine to create extra travel that can place a growing burden on your order picking staff. Fortunately, there are some powered vehicle options that can help.

Hardly current service

| MCM staff

A Multichannel Merchant staffer placed an order for personalized labels on the Website of stationery marketer Current on June 3. She received an e-mail

Lean, mean merch machine

| MCM staff

What does this mean to you? It’s time to create a leaner, meaner merchandise machine that will not only allow you to make wiser product choices, but also help you develop a more desirable brand. The following four suggestions will help you do both:

Incoming Traffic

| Mark Del Franco

Receiving is the Rodney Dangerfield of operations, says consultant Wayne Teres: Few companies give it any respect.

But it is the most complicated function in the warehouse. One error can have a ripple effect.

TAKING STOCK

| Jim Tierney

If you waited until now to buy paper for your catalog, you might be in trouble. Prices have gone up, thanks mostly to mill closures and consolidation in the industry.

Desperately seeking CRM

| Debra Ellis

Managing customer relationship management used to be pretty simple. Most shopkeepers knew their patrons personally. They lived in the same community,