Crate & Barrel unpacks supply chain transparency

A home furnishings retailer is decreasing lead time and improving shipment visibility with collaborative tracking.

Crate & Barrel leverages technology and services from third-party logistics provider Nolan Transportation Group (NTG) to improve its domestic over-the-road supply chain. The overall goals of the implementation are to decrease lead time, improve shipment visibility, and boost shipment success through on-time delivery performance. 

To reach these goals, the retailer engages in collaborative tracking efforts across multiple teams and dedicated account management. Crate & Barrel has also implemented data reports that illustrate lane history and track on-time percentage growth. 

Within the first three months of the project’s inception, Crate & Barrel increased overall on-time performance over 10% network-wide. After the conclusion of the first full calendar year, NTG completed over 4,000 shipments across dozens of lanes, with an overall on-time percentage of 95%. Additionally, the retailer improved response time, customer service levels, and satisfaction across the distribution center, warehouse, and store shipping teams.

“At Crate & Barrel, my domestic transportation team struggled with customer service, responsiveness, shipment visibility and on-time delivery performance with our carriers moving product to our stores and x-docks,” said Brad Voelpel, director, global transportation at Crate & Barrel. “We approached NTG with our pain points and challenges and were assured we would see immediate improvements across the board. I was skeptical at first; however, after five months and moving approximately 55% of our total store/x-dock volume to NTG, I can stand here today saying it has been one of the best moves we have made within our domestic network.”