Retail

Office Depot Plans to Close About 400 Stores Over the Next Two Years

May 12, 2014

Office Depot Inc. will close at least 400 stores by the end of 2016, according to chairman and CEO Roland Smith.

Security Must Be Central to Retailers' Omnichannel Initiatives, Report Urges

May 12, 2014

Retailers must put procedures in place to protect the long-term health of their businesses and ensure security concerns are a central part of their omnichannel strategies, according to a new industry report.

Coping With the Nightmare of Consumer-Product Recalls

May 12, 2014

Robert J. Bowman, SupplyChainBrain

My previous post covered the difficulty of tracing and ensuring the quality of automotive and aerospace parts. The job is just as tough for consumer packaged goods and food producers.

Retail Imports to Increase 3.5 Percent in May as Port Labor Talks Set to Start

May 9, 2014

National Retail Federation

Import volume at the nation's major retail container ports is expected to increase 3.5 percent in May as negotiators prepare to begin talks on a new contract for West Coast dockworkers, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.

Multibillion-dollar Deals Drive Retail, Consumer M&A Activity in Early 2014

May 9, 2014

PwC US

U.S. retail and consumer merger & acquisition activity during the first quarter of 2014 was primarily driven by five multibillion-dollar transactions, with more than half aligned to the food and beverage sector, confirming a positive deals outlook for the year, according to PwC's U.S. retail and consumer deals insights Q1 2014 report.

Fujitsu Enters Defense Arena with Acquisition of RFID Technology Provider

May 8, 2014

RFID Journal

Fujitsu UK & Ireland (UK&I), the IT systems arm of global electronics firm Fujitsu, has acquired Texas RFID software and solutions provider GlobeRanger.

Call It Additive Manufacturing, Please, Not 3D Printing

May 8, 2014

The Economist

The biggest engineering companies nowadays prefer to talk about "additive manufacturing" rather than "3D printing".

Google, Amazon in Same-Day Delivery Battle in Los Angeles

May 8, 2014

Los Angeles Times

Google and Amazon are going head to head over Los Angeles area shoppers, launching same-day delivery services in the area within days of each other.

Resilinc Offers Corporate Social Responsibility Module in SupplyIntel

May 7, 2014

Resilinc Corp.

Resilinc Corp., a vendor of applications for supply-chain resiliency, has made available the SupplyIntel CSR (corporate social responsibility) Module.

Organization for Women in Supply Chain Management Launches Website

May 7, 2014

AWESOME

A new digital presence has recently been created by AWESOME (Achieving Women’s Excellence in Supply Chain Operations, Management, and Education), the industry-wide supply chain leadership initiative started in early 2013. The launch of www.awesomeleaders.org is timed to coincide with the second Annual AWESOME Symposium on May 15, 2014, in Chicago.

Retail

The latest supply-chain news, analysis, trends and tools for executives in the retail industry — which comprises companies that operate physical or internet stores with diversified product lines. Learn how pharmaceutical and biotech companies and their suppliers around the world are managing the flow of products across all channels of the enterprise. Experts sound off on forecasting and demand planning, supply-chain visibility, logistics outsourcing, inventory optimization, transportation management, warehouse management, supply-chain security, corporate social responsibility and more.