The New Retail: Three Legs to Stand On?

摘要

Did you ever read a magazine or newspaper article and get the feeling that something was missing? It happened to me when I read several business press articles touting e-commerce as the savior of retailers. That "something's missing" feeling bothered me as I read various vague descriptions of how e-commerce is the driving force behind the "New Retail." Those supply chain observers went a little buzzworthy on us about what is truly fueling the retail revolution. E-commerce? Sure, it gets all the glory, but it's just the first leg of what I call the three-legged stool of the New Retail. The second leg is logistics technology-including visibility, ERP, and inventory control-that enables linking back to suppliers and forward to consumer demand signals (e-commerce or not), effectively matching demand to supply. E-commerce alone won't drive the ability to serve customers, or provide same-day delivery.