This year was one for the books. The industry endured the most major supply chain disruption in modern history. We saw shelves stock out and online shopping carts fill up. We learned a lot in 2020, so here’s a recap of our most popular articles of the year.
Top 10 Flexe blog posts from 2020 #
1.) Announcing Flexe’s $70M Series C Funding
Some good news came out of 2020. Flexe Co-founder and CEO Karl Siebrecht announced on December 1st that Flexe secured $70M in Series C Funding. We plan to use the new capital to grow our team and continue to deliver innovative logistics solutions so our customers can grow and adapt in any environment. Karl’s letter includes:
We’re continuing on our mission to create the open logistics network that optimizes the global delivery of goods
We’re investing in our people and technology
We’re hiring!
2.) Flexe Hub: COVID-19 Facts and Trends in Retail and Supply Chain
It’s no secret that COVID-19 impacted every industry. This year, we created a central hub for news and trends related to the pandemic and its impact on the supply chain and retail. Some recent entries include:
Recent vaccine approval and how its distribution impacts supply chain
How major marketplaces like Amazon plan to add infrastructure and labor to support the surge in eCommerce
Which retailers sank or swam in 2020
3.) Supply Chain Disruption Q&A: From Redundancy Comes Resilience
This year, we spoke to a number of industry experts about the massive supply chain disruption resulting from the pandemic and the subsequent recession. In May, we interviewed Dr. Kevin J. Dooley, PhD., a professor of Supply Chain Management from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University and Chief Scientist of the Sustainability Consortium at the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability. His domain of expertise includes supply chain sustainability and complex adaptive supply networks. He discussed:
What makes COVID-19 a unique, global supply chain disruption
How to build resilience into supply chains and what retailers and brands can do now
The dynamic between COVID-19 and supply chain sustainability
4.) What Is Supply Chain Disruption and Why Is COVID-19 Different?
We’ve seen disruptions before—from weather events to geopolitical issues to evolving buying behaviors. But never before have we seen disruption of this scale. In this article, we look at the impacts of COVID-19 on retailers and logistics providers. Topics include:
The difference between typical supply chain disruptions and the unique characteristics of COVID-19 as it relates to the supply chain
How COVID-19 impacts consumer buying behaviors
The backlash on the retail and supply chain industries
5.) Q&A: CEOs Discuss COVID-19, the Supply Chain, and Modern Logistics Solutions
In March, we held a virtual panel, “The Future of Freight and Logistics” in which Dan Lewis, Co-Founder and CEO of Convoy, Ryan Petersen, Co-Founder and CEO of Flexport, and Karl Siebrecht, Co-Founder and CEO of Flexe discussed how the COVID-19 pandemic was impacting the supply chain and how retailers and brands could respond faster with modern, digital logistics solutions. Harshad Kanvinde, Practice Leader of Strategy & Supply Chain at Slalom Consulting, moderated the panel and discussed:
Retailers’ response at the start of the pandemic
The pandemic’s impact on freight, transportation, and logistics networks
How technology and modern logistics solutions help mitigate disruptions
Watch the Q&A here.
6.) The Year of the Supply Chain: 9 Retail & Logistics Predictions
At the start of 2020, we made 9 predictions on what we might see in retail and logistics. But, many of those predictions became obsolete when COVID-19 hit. Not all were lost:
Partnering with modern logistics solutions to tackle (and mitigate) supply chain disruptions
Focusing on transforming stores into experiences, able to support both in-store and online shopping
Turning to flexible logistics solutions to manage assets in a downturn
7.) How To: Improve Inventory Allocation and Last-Mile Logistics
One thing is clear: The world has changed. With the expansion of eCommerce and omnichannel, there is immense pressure on retailers and brands to meet high consumer demands for better delivery promises, including reconfiguring their logistics networks, inventory allocation plans, and transportation strategies to improve last-mile logistics. In this article we explore how to:
Build a logistics network that improves last-mile delivery
Offset costs with on-demand warehousing and fulfillment
Improve inventory allocation and management
8.) 4 Supply Chain Secrets to Drive Customer Satisfaction
In this article, learn about four customer-centric supply chain strategies that will drive sales by keeping customers top of mind, which include:
Improving on-time delivery
Using technology to enhance visibility
Increasing speed-to-delivery with on-demand fulfillment
Satisfying customer demand with an agile inventory strategy
9.) On-Demand Warehousing 101: Digital Transformation and the End-to-End Supply Chain
“Digital transformation” is about replacing inefficient legacy systems and processes with new technologies to improve performance, increase visibility and control, and enable organizations to have information at their fingertips. This article predates COVID, but the content rings true. We discuss:
Where supply chain has been and where it’s going
What has prevented supply chain leaders from prioritizing digital transformation
Innovative technologies that are transforming an “old school” industry
10.) On-Demand Warehousing 101: What Is On-Demand Warehousing?
Interested in knowing more about on-demand warehousing? In the first installment of our on-demand warehousing 101 series, we answer the questions:
What is on-demand warehousing?
What makes it so effective?
How do retailers and brands actually use it?
Happy holidays from all of us at Flexe! Stay tuned for our 2021 Retail and Logistics Predictions whitepaper coming out in January.
