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Future of Retail — Omnichannel


issue 03


patterns are less consistent and can occur at any time of the day making it difficult for retailers to plan their resource requirements. This challenge in planning requires retailers to be able to react quickly and flexibly to changes in demand impacting their ability to control operational costs. And let’s not forget Black Friday. The


popularisation of peak sale events creates huge spikes in demand that retailers need to find capacity for. Basic economics imply that when demand exceeds supply, prices usually go up. Yet with margins already compromised by discounting, the added costs must be absorbed by the retailer or passed on to a


more demanding consumer. Lastly, many retailers simply don’t have


visibility of omnichannel costs. By adding more links and connectors to the chain, retailers are relying more and more on third parties to conduct activities along the entire network and also have the added challenge of managing their activities and associated costs. And while the service offer for omnichannel


has progressed in leaps and bounds, the back end systems to support this are still playing catching up. Few retailers today have sight of the number of times an item is returned before it lands with the customer and the costs of doing so. Similarly, many retailers are still


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