Target taps into tech acquisitions as it expands supply chain network

20 May 2021 – Dive Brief: The expansion of Target’s sortation and distribution center network, which the retailer had previously announced, will rely on multiple acquisitions it has made in recent years, COO John Mulligan said on the company’s earnings call Wednesday. As it opens up more sortation centers, the locations will use technology from Grand Junction as…

Suning Unveils “One-stop Solution” for Foreign Brands Seeking Entry into China

7 May 2021 – Suning International, the international business arm of Chinese retail giant Suning Group, unveiled a new cross-border initiative that will see the company partner with foreign brands that are seeking entry and expansion into the world’s second largest economy. Leveraging its global supply chains and digital capabilities, Suning International is offering overseas…

Alibaba already disrupted retail and finance. Next up? Logistics

23 March 2021 – Cainiao emerges as new profit center by leveraging data to streamline deliveries The business of moving boxes around China is anything but boring these days. Cainiao Smart Logistics Network last month reported faster revenue growth than any other specified part of Alibaba Group Holding’s vast empire. JD Logistics, the corresponding arm…

Four Brexit red tape horror stories

27 February 2021 – Brexit correspondent Lisa O’Carroll distils a few of the post-exit bumps facing individual British firms that she has investigated for the Guardian Hard cheese Cheesemaker Simon Spurrell reports losing a fifth of his orders overnight when Britain left the single market on 1st January. His Cheshire Cheese Company had a successful line…

Supply chain impact of coronavirus increases further

The devastating impact of coronavirus on global trade and supply chains continues to escalate as non-China Covid-19 infections surpass those recorded in China itself. One upshot is that even as cargo availability in China increases, the implementation of social distancing and isolation policies in a bid to contain the spread of the virus threaten economic…