www.dcvelocity.com JANUARY 2019 DC VELOCITY 39
offices and limited-access residential buildings adds to
delivery complexity, time, and cost. So, despite the perceived potential, fulfilling urban omnichannel demand
profitably poses quite a challenge.
The additional complications are not deterring omnichannel retailers. Purveyors from Amazon to Walmart
are pursuing opportunities created by the intersection
of e-commerce and the revival of city living. In the 2018
“Eighth Annual State of Retail Supply Chain (SRSC)
Report,” nearly 60 percent of the research participants
said they are active in urban fulfillment. Furthermore,
that interest is increasing, with 80 percent of all respon-
dents indicating that urban fulfillment is a growth area
for their company. Additionally, the SRSC Report found
that 78 percent of respondents believe that the value
derived from the pursuit of urban fulfillment outweighs
the costs. Stating “… urban logistics is the new battle-
ground” in an SRSC interview, a supply chain executive
indicated that flawless fulfillment and delivery will be
essential to capturing and retaining urban market share.
Winning the battle for city shoppers will not be easy.
Retailers must establish networks with the capabilities to
fill and deliver product to urban consumers with urgency and efficiency. To do so, they must be fully aware of
the unique challenges that come with urban fulfillment
and the different alternatives available for fulfilling
omnichannel demand. They must have a clear understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of each
of these different fulfillment models, and then select the
combination of options that best fits their operational
needs. Integrating current trends and findings from the
SRSC Report, we outline the challenges, requirements,
and emerging solutions that retailers face as they address
omnichannel for urban markets. (For more information
