NRF is over, finishing with some Day 3 thoughts: → "The most revolutionary thing about supply chain is the wave of talent coming in." Colin Yankee , CSCO at Tractor Supply Company. This was my favorite new perspective from the show, and I have to give it to Colin for the fresh take. Those who have been following me since Shipium started know that the biggest constraint I've seen in retail are the old ways with old mindsets that are resistant to new operating models. Remember, businesses are three things: PEOPLE + PROCESS + TECHNOLOGY. NRF was about about technology. But no amount of fresh technology will change the industry unless the people start changing too. Then the process will follow. → There were more international businesses and attendees than I remember. Some of the more enjoyable conversations were with them. They are eager and hungry for innovation. I was surprised by how many were trying to attack the US market. Usually, we are talking to American retailers who are trying to expand outwardly. Which means ... more competition for the consumer! Are you ready? Probably not. → Back to the resistance thing: We offer modern tech that basically replicates the operating model that powered fast/cheap/accurate/profitable shipping for Prime. It's is a new approach, our customers have resounding evidence of its success. A handful of really positive convos with Fortune 500 retailers! Some up and coming operators who are pushing change at their org, and it's going well. I won't name names to protect the innocent, ha. But several conversations throughout the day were with large retailers with incumbent org structures and teams, who veered the conversation towards, "Well, let me check with [Vendor XYZ from the 1990s who I already work with] because they can help in this area." Thought experiment: If they really could help, then why do none of their retail customers offer a Prime like experience to consumers? Ask them for their customers, and go buy something off their site to see how painful it is. The truth is incumbent enterprise warehouse, transportation, order, or inventory systems — as excellent as they are in their areas of ownership — are not end-to-end shipping systems. Shipium (and what I helped build at Amazon) is an end-to-end shipping system that is the unlock for a Prime like experience. It makes your current partners more valuable at what they do, and helps them to remain excellent as the system of record powering your operations. But they don't reduce your highest operating expense (shipping) or improve customer experience like an end-to-end shipping system. Time to update the operating model.
Excellent insights. Fresh and responsive tech compared with actually caring about the customer journey is the most direct path to success.
Mike Gorey
7mo
Colin Yankee great insight!
Bill Catania
7mo
Well said, Jason!
Parcel + Ecommerce Delivery Consultant | Increasing parcel shipping knowledge throughout the ecommerce industry | Founder, LPF Spend Management
7mo"But no amount of fresh technology will change the industry unless the people start changing too." Agree 100%, both with technology and the overall mindset around delivery, and its role/priority in the retailers' organization. Until the mindset shifts from passive/static to intentional/dynamic, technology will be underutilized, the package delivery market will remain relatively unchanged, and delivery experience will be pedestrian (and more expensive than it needs to be) for most retailers.