Online retail has transformed the way the world does business to a more radical extent than anything we’ve seen in recent history. From the biggest international retailers to those who simply set up the smallest back bedroom operations from home, selling online has overtaken and even ousted high street retail in many global regions.
Unsurprisingly therefore, the impact of ecommerce can also be seen in warehouses all over the world. In the past, most warehouses focused on the distribution of goods to retailers and other suppliers. These days, more warehouses than ever before are taking orders directly from customers and fulfilling them accordingly.
No longer an alternative, ecommerce really is the new norm the world is becoming accustomed to.
According to a recent report from Time magazine, online Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales tallies for the past year significantly outshone those of conventional store sales during the course of the famed weekend for the first time ever. And it’s a trend that’s only set to continue going forward, though far from restricted to special sales events only.
But what effect is all of this having on the world’s warehouses?
They’re Getting Taller
Interestingly, research suggests that on a global basis, the average height of a busy retail warehouse is actually increasing. The reason being that as warehouses are forced to contend with grater direct demand for a wide variety of products, they are finding it necessary to house more merchandise in the same space. As it’s often prohibitively expensive to extend warehouses or relocate to larger premises, businesses are instead looking upwards.
They’re Moving Closer to Customers
In addition, growing demand for on-demand delivery of goods is leading to an era where warehouses need to be positioned as closely as possible to customers. When the warehouse itself is delivering products directly to any given target audience, it no longer makes sense for it to be positioned massively out of the way in the middle of nowhere. This once wasn’t an issue when making only bulk deliveries to retailers and suppliers – delivering goods on a smaller scale directly to customers is something else entirely.
They’re Getting More Advanced
Last but not least, in order to cope with such enormous increases in both inward and outward merchandise traffic, warehouses are becoming ever more sophisticated and advanced. From the IT systems that watch over inventory levels to the efficiency of the shelving to the machinery used to transport and move goods around, the only way to keep up with the times these days is to make the necessary changes and improvements. At least, in the case of those wishing to cater to the demands of the modern consumer, for whom near-instant gratification and total convenience really are the only acceptable standards.
And of course, it’s only a matter of time before automated robotic systems and devices once again revolutionise the way we approach warehousing, though it’s likely to be some time before any sweeping changes come into effect.
