Positioning Yourself For Growth
From many traditional catalogs with e-commerce sites, all I’m hearing is doom and gloom. And the national news media aren’t any help with the consumer. I’m not trying to say it isn’t a tough business climate out there—it is.
I believe two of our traditional clients did well because they are leaders in their merchandise niche, they had more than 50% new products, and they were merchandised well. That’s something from which we can learn.
This past week, I’ve been hearing some very positive things from the business community. While it’s not a gangbuster business climate, I’ve heard:
• Many of the companies we are talking to see it as a time to build on their strengths while competitors play it safe
• Others are consolidating operations and warehouses which will make them more profitable
• Some are going multi-warehouse (both coasts) and expanding operations to serve customers with shorter shipping times and reduced expenses
• Some recognize that if they stop systems projects, they will not be ready when business improves because it takes time to make the decision, contract and complete the conversions
• Several merchants are improving inventory management practices, implementing new forecasting systems, etc.
I have seen first hand that there is growth in many small and emerging companies, which isn’t where I would have expected it. Recently, we presented our two-day seminar—How to Improve Fulfillment and Operations—to 35 owners and senior managers from 23 small and emerging companies. All of these are Stone Edge Technologies systems clients (www.stoneedge.com). All of them are primarily e-commerce based entrepreneurial businesses. I am amazed at what they are doing with SEO, loyalty clubs, etc. These businesses have a “can do†spirit that is pushing them in their growth cycle amid these challenging times. All of these are unique niche businesses. I was impressed with the ways that they were each growing their businesses—and that they did not have the doom and gloom mentality.
I think that many of us can learn from them.
Curt Barry is president of F. Curtis Barry & Company, a multichannel operations and fulfillment consulting firm with expertise in multichannel systems, warehouse, call center, inventory, and benchmarking; Learn more online at: http://www.fcbco.com.
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