Create a Peak Season Powerhouse with Micro Fulfillment Centers

Given the continued supply chain uncertainty, increased customer expectations, and a tidal wave of competing brands, how can you prepare for success this peak season? By revamping your inventory and distribution methods while shifting your focus to micro fulfillment centers (MFCs). I want to talk a little bit about how MFCs have been redefined, and how they can be a key to your brand’s differentiation and success.

How Warehousing Woes Set Retailers Up for Peak Season Failure

For a while, small and mid-sized businesses could ignore growing retail trends with few consequences. But now, competition is steep and online shopping is the “new norm.” Retailers who disregard critical changes in commerce, foregoing micro-fulfillment centers, will be left behind.?

How do you avoid the same fate as we approach peak season? By updating and fine-tuning your e-commerce operations, supply chain networks, and fulfillment processes.?

But to accomplish this, you need an omnichannel vision that caters to online shoppers and ultra-fast delivery. Traditional warehousing models operate with physical stores as the focal point. These sprawling distribution centers are located far from city residents and the neighborhoods they service.?

Retailers make considerable investments in long-distance carriers to deliver goods to stores and homes. But a longer transit time isn’t the only problem. Larger warehouses contain massive volumes of goods and often have a sluggish inventory system that’s more prone to error and delays in restocking.?

Two-day delivery is nearly impossible in many cases, and same-day delivery is out of the question. During peak season, this is an even bigger customer turnoff. Why wait when they can order from a competitor for a similar price and get it sooner??

Micro-Fulfillment Centers Level the Playing Field for Retailers

Consider this year’s holiday season as an opportunity to excel in meeting consumer demand. An essential step forward is to leverage the use of MFCs. These local inventory powerhouses are small warehouses designated for fulfilling online orders with speed and efficiency. They’re located in and around the neighborhoods they service. McKinsey refers to these as? “omni nodes”.

MFCs close the distance between product and customer while also cutting inventory carrying costs. Now it’s possible to give your customers same-day or next-day delivery. According to McKinsey, about 25% of consumers are willing to pay more for same-day delivery when available, and this number is expected to rise in coming years.

While there is more to a micro-fulfillment strategy than precisely located nimble warehouses, it’s the launching point for peak season retail success. Companies like GEODIS City Delivery can help you incorporate last-mile delivery solutions from MFCs to local homes and storefronts. They can also help you optimize your inventory process for faster and more efficient order fulfillment.

When peak season hits, you can be ready to compete with your biggest retail rivals as you meet customer expectations.

Turn Your Storefront into a Micro Fulfillment Hub (and Other MFC Solutions)?

If establishing micro fulfillment centers throughout a region or the country seems—well, impossible—then consider flexible solutions. Retailers, need not look further than ?GEODIS City Delivery, to turn their physical storefronts into MFCs for faster delivery options.

Some retailers convert the entire building to do store fulfillment while others embrace an omnichannel approach, offering in-store purchases while also fulfilling online orders (home delivery and pick up in-store).

With a bit of preparation, reworking, and logistics support, you can optimize any number of storefronts already strategically located in commercial areas, making store fulfillment and same-day delivery far more feasible. ?

How GEODIS Can Transform Your Supply Chain for Peak Season Success

MFCs are part of a larger micro fulfillment strategy that outlines the specific components necessary for your company’s success during peak season and beyond.

GEODIS City Delivery can help you:

·????????Establish and set up distribution in major metros using micro-fulfillment centers (storefront, mall-based, etc.)

·????????Implement last-mile delivery services (same-day, next-day)

·????????Forward stage inventory

·????????Establish efficient returns management

·????????Diversify your carriers

·????????Utilize an alternative delivery network bypassing the parcel and regional carriers.

If you want to prepare for the peak season to satisfy customers and see profits soar, contact us to discover the services that best suit your needs. You can schedule an appointment with one of our experts or submit your question through an online form.