As IRX 2013 approaches, we’re taking an in-depth look at each of the six conferences. Today the focus is on the Operations and Logistics Conference, to be held in the eSeller Theatre on March 21.
Today, delivery is about more than getting the goods to the buyer on time. It’s a key way that companies can differentiate their customer service in a multichannel world. Just as shoppers demand the ability to buy wherever and whenever is most convenient, so too they want to take delivery of their goods at the moment that best fits in with busy lives. And those retailers who can offer convenient services are set to win an important advantage in today’s competitive retail climate.
How exactly retailers can go about making sure they profit from delivery is the overarching theme of the Operations and Logistics Conference at IRX 2013, directed by Internet Retailing web editor and joint supplements editor Chloe Rigby, and to be held on March 21.
“Today, sophisticated retailers are putting in place sophisticated delivery models that put them ahead of the competition,” said Rigby. “They know that buying decisions are often taken not only based on the product and the price, but also on how quickly and efficiently they personally can take possession of their purchase. The Operations and Logistics Conference is designed to support traders of all sizes as they take important decisions around their logistics and evaluate the options that could work best for their business.”
The huge popularity of Click and Collect services demonstrates that the point of delivery is now as likely to be in the store as at the home, or even in somebody else’s store, through a range of different collection points. This will be the subject for keynote speaker Saeed Anslow, development director (home shopping) at Asda in the Operations and Logistics Conference at IRX 2013. In his role, Anslow is a blue-sky thinker, responsible for developing new space and concepts for Asda. In How shoppers buy: the rise and rise of Click and Collect, at 10.30am, Anslow will be sharing practical insights on how the supermarket group evolved its Click and Collect services – and how on customers use them.
Then, at 11am, Lindsey Hough, senior analyst (multichannel) at Boots UK is the speaker for All stocked up? Managing insights for the extra large range. Hough will be considering the insights that web analytics can offer retailers who are planning how to stock their ranges across channels, balancing product availability across stores and online, as well as looking at how that availability can best be reflected and merchandised online.
The morning panel session is on The future of logistics, when Tom Allason, chief executive and founder of Shutl, Stuart Miller, chief executive and co-founder of ByBox, Roger Morris, head of core network parcels at Royal Mail, and Joe Mozzali, Europe region strategy vice president at UPS, will be debating how the logistics industry has adapted and will adapt in the future to the rise of online and multichannel commerce. The hour-long session starts at 11.30am and is followed at 12.30pm by a lunch break.
At 1pm, Joe Mozzali, of UPS, returns to the stage for the afternoon keynote address.
And at 1.30pm we’re looking at a different kind of logistics – how to deliver email marketing messages at scale to customers. In Email for enterprises, Richard Samuels, regional sales manager at Silverpop, and a retail client, will be discussing how and why enterprises can best automate their email marketing in order to boost campaign profitability.
At 2pm we’ll be looking at the entrepreneurial angle, hearing from retailers about the way they managed their logistics and operations as their business grew from start-up and beyond in Adventures in Logistics.
In the final session of the day, at 2pm, Matthew Curry, head of ecommerce at sexual happiness products company Lovehoney, will be considering the thorny issue of returns. In his session, Curry will consider how returns can be more than a duty, and indeed can delight the consumer.
To find out more about the Operations and Logistics Conference, click here.
And click here to find out more about IRX 2013, what it has to offer, and to register to attend for free.
IRX 2013 will be held at the NEC in Birmingham on March 20 and 21. Follow our series of regular previews to find out about the highlights.
