Internet Retailing

By Ed Smith,freelance writer

Prior to the coronavirus outbreak, you may have read that offline marketing channels such as billboards had seen a significant spike in demand over the last few years.

Covid-19 has placed global supply chains under unprecedented levels of disruption and uncertainty. From consumers’ stock-piling commodities that left supermarket shelves empty, to supply issues of healthcare Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), the Supply Chain has never been under the spotlight so much as it gains new found respect.

OnBuy’s is about to embark on a worldwide scale-up of its eCommerce platform into over 140 countries by 2023, starting with 40 initial sites by year-end 2020. The company forecasts that this move will drive 50x growth within four years.

Naveo Commerce has launched as a new company, following the merger of operations between Digital Goodie and Maginus.

As online grocers report a spike in orders and shoppers post pictures of newly emptied shelves, ParcelHero says we must all learn the lessons of March and avoid panic-buying ahead of a second coronavirus wave. It also warns pandemic profiteers, who buy cleaning products now to sell at a higher price during lockdown, won’t get away with it a second time.

The Office of National Statistics (ONS) retail figures for August show that the retail bounce-back has stumbled, says the home delivery expert ParcelHero. The value of all retail sales grew by just 0.7% in August - not the significant recovery stores had been hoping for and a marked slowdown from July’s 4.4% jump.

The rise of e-commerce has brought about significant disruption to traditional logistics activities, demanding constant adjustment to best meet changing demand. Similar adaptability is vital in intralogistics to ensure orders are processed and fulfilled effectively. In this article, Stephen Hayes, managing director of Beckhoff UK, explains how to establish scalable, adaptable intralogistics activity from the warehouse floor up.

Global eCommerce platform, Kooomo, has announced a list of updates to its platform, which improve the experience for both the retailer and its end customers enabling retailers to focus on customer experience and competitiveness.

Personalisation will be the key for retailers to create a compelling experience as shoppers settle into their new post-COVID-19 habits, with retailers needing to consider incorporating personalisation into their online and offline strategies as a priority. This is according to global eCommerce platform, Kooomo, which outlines that tailored experiences will be critical in responding to the growing demands and expectations of the modern consumer.

GreyOrange, a global software and mobile robotics provider that leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to optimize fulfilment operations, has announced patents for technology essential for companies to achieve high-yield omnichannel fulfilment as well as to maximise facility space utilization through multilevel operation capabilities.