Navigating Retail Supply Chain Challenges

Retail supply chains are under tremendous strain, due to an extraordinary confluence of circumstances: enormous demand, soaring costs to ship freight, constrained capacity and equipment shortages, systemic challenges of existing transportation networks, and bottlenecks at ports.

Leading retailers are applying all their logistics, distribution and fulfillment resources and workforces to ensure products keep moving to store shelves and customers’ doorsteps ahead of the holiday season.

Tackling the Problem

Recent action by the Biden administration to address some of the bottlenecks causing congestion in the supply chain is welcomed, but long-term reforms and new investments are also needed to end the cycle of systemic issues and port congestion that burdens America’s retailers and all those that depend on secure and predictable supply chains. These priorities include:

Invest & Modernize Transportation Infrastructure: Leverage the input of major infrastructure users, including leading retailers, to help target investment from the bipartisan infrastructure deal for maximum impact.
Strengthen Oversight of Ocean Shipping Industry: The Administration and Congress must bolster the Federal Maritime Commission’s work providing oversight of foreign-owned ocean carriers, carrier alliances, and terminal operators—sending the message that fair and open supply chains are essential to U.S. businesses and the American economy.
Fortify Supply Chain Data Infrastructure: Consistent data and metrics, along with interoperable data standards, are essential to enable the reliability and end-to-end visibility required by today’s light-speed supply chains.
Remove Barriers to Trucking: To restore capacity, the trucking industry needs over 80,000 drivers, and government policies must enable a pipeline of new drivers, as well as more efficient goods movement from reevaluating size & weight restrictions.

We continue to work together with our retail members, policymakers, and supply chain stakeholders to help the industry navigate these significant challenges and meet the needs of families and communities.

Top retail supply chain teams will be there — will you?

LINK2022: The Retail Supply Chain Conference

Retailers face epic supply chain challenges. You are not alone. Join us for LINK2022: The Retail Supply Chain Conference where industry leaders come together to confront challenges of today, explore new solutions, and shape the future of the industry.

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Supply Chain Committees

The Retail industry Leaders Association supply chain committees is where industry leaders come together to confront today's challenges, explore new solutions, and shape the industry's future. RILA gathers top executives in retail supply chain to network and learn from each other through case studies, best practices, and expert thought leadership. Together we are committed to helping the retail supply chain community adapt with knowledge and innovative solutions.

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Retailers face epic supply chain challenges. You are not alone. Join us.

In the News

The push for more storage space comes as retailers are re-evaluating their logistics networks in the wake of the upheaval during coronavirus-driven shutdowns. Merchants were already moving goods closer to customers, and the pandemic is accelerating those shifts, said Jess Dankert, vice president of supply chain for the Retail Industry Leaders Association.

The Wall Street Journal

Jess Dankert, vice president of supply chain for the Retail Industry Leaders Association, noted that the new law comes just months after a federal appeals court upheld California’s authority to apply its gig economy law to some 70,000 truck drivers, forcing companies to classify them as employees rather than independent contractors. “This is just another example of good intentions leading to bad legislation,” Dankert wrote in a blog post.

PYMNTS.com

In response to the surcharges, retailers will likely encourage consumers to purchase earlier than usual. Stores may promote curb-side pickup of online orders and use crowd-sourcing companies for home delivery, said Jess Dankert, vice president of supply chain for the Retail Industry Leaders Association, a trade group.

BNN Bloomberg

Blog Post

Will New Fees Encourage Carriers to Move Cargo Faster?

10/26/2021

Blog Post

Who Pays for Supply Chain Disruption?

11/01/2021

Press Release

Supply Chain & Infrastructure Challenges Demand BIF Vote

09/27/2021

Blog Post

Retailers Welcome Biden Commitment to Supply Chain Crisis

10/13/2021

“The Long Beach Container Terminal at Middle Harbor is a great example of the kind of modernization that is needed at our nation’s ports,” said Jess Dankert, vice president of supply chain for the Retail Industry Leaders Association. “The efficiencies created here will have positive ripple effects throughout supply chains.”

Los Angeles Business Journal

“What you saw earlier on I think has very much smoothed out as we’ve...gotten further into this,” said Jess Dankert, vice president of supply chain at the Retail Industry Leaders Association, a U.S. trade group. “The story of supply chain is, something happens and you need to adapt.” she said.

The Wall Street Journal

“Third parties can help us gather and aggregate more information on consumers, and thereby identify growing secondary markets,” observes Dankert. “Predictive analytics can also be jointly developed to get a read on future buying patterns as well as future return patterns. There’s only opportunity ahead if you’re ready to put in the work.”

Logistics Management

“All of our retailers are again collaborating with their suppliers with their carriers and logistic service providers to find ways to flex those supply chains and reroute around particular areas of disruption.”