The Week of October 2nd: 10 things eft's been reading
Walmart is making some significant moves. Retail should probably pay attention.
1. Amazon’s customer centricity is second to none. Here are some tips on how they do it. ‘Amazon Knows Something Many Organizations Don't: Its Customers.’ [Inc.]
2. I still believe Walmart is really retail’s sleeping giant. (see here for my full article on this). ‘Where Walmart’s Marc Lore Is Trying to One-Up Amazon.’ [eMarketer]
3. And here’s one of the reasons – they’re doing things like open-sourcing their front-end which means they’re adapting quickly to new realities. ‘Walmart Labs open sources its tool for bringing React Native to existing mobile apps.’ [TechCrunch]
4. Here’s another reason: Walmart is identifying its customer needs quickly. ‘Walmart has acquired the logistics startup Parcel to help launch same-day delivery in New York City.’ [Recode]
5. Amazon’s competitive advantage – their in-house supply chain infrastructure. ‘Forget Whole Foods. Here’s why Amazon’s competitors should worry.’ [Retail Leader]
6. Tesla’s lofty supply chain goals fall flat again. ‘Tesla Model 3 production falls short of expectations after hitting production snags.’ [Quartz]
7. But even supply chain’s best also fall flat. ‘Is Apple iPhone X in Trouble?.’ [Fortune]
8. How REI took environmentally responsibly to the heart of its supply chain. ‘How REI's Green Obsession Sparked D.C. Innovations.’ [SupplyChainBrain]
9. When the sage of Omaha gambles on logistics, it’s probably worth paying attention to. ‘Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway acquiring Pilot Flying J truck stops.’ [USA Today]
10. It started as a bit of industry buzz, now everyone’s doing it – the fact is consumers are now used to having control. ‘XPO to roll out new last mile technology offering in November.’ [Logistics Management]