OPERATIONS / SUPPLY CHAIN

FedEx to hike shipping rates by almost 5%
FedEx will have new shipping rates starting January 1, 2018. All subsidiaries, FedEx Express, FedEx Ground and FedEx Freight, will increase their shipping fees by an average of 4.9%. The company is also imparting additional surcharges across other services. For example, FedEx Express shipping rates will spike by an average of 4.9% for U.S. domestic, U.S. export and U.S. import services. FedEx One Rate pricing will increase by an average of 3.5%.
Discount giant will rely on its own workforce for holiday rush
Walmart is bucking the holiday hiring trend again this year. Unlike other competitors that are hiring thousands of temporary workers to service shoppers during the holiday season, the discount giant plans to offer extra hours to its current associates. These shifts will staff traditional roles like cashier and stocker, and newly created technology-empowered positions, such as personal shoppers and Pickup associates, according to Walmart.

UPS kicks off holiday hiring spree

UPS is ramping up its holiday workforce. The company plans to hire approximately 95,000 seasonal employees to support an anticipated increase in package shipments during the 2017 holiday shopping season. UPS expects increased delivery volume to span between early November and January 2018. This marks the fourth straight year that UPS is hiring this number of employees for the holiday season, according to Reuters.
Walmart eliminating overnight stocking in Neighborhood Market Stores

Walmart is changing the way it stocks merchandise in its small-format Neighborhood Market Stores. In a blog on its website, the discounter announced that in more than 430 of its Neighborhood Market stores that are already closed overnight, it is shifting overnight stocking hours to the daytime and using technology to make the inventory management process easier. The retailer said it initially piloted day-stocking in 50 stores in and around the Tampa and Dallas areas with "very encouraging" results.
Fast-growing menswear retailer ready for holiday season with new infrastructure

As it expands online and opens stores offline, Untuckit is looking forward to its biggest holiday shopping season to date.
Report: Home goods retailer to accept digital wallet, Venmo

A new payment option will help Williams-Sonoma tap a new customer segment. The home goods retailer will soon accept the peer-to-peer money-transferring service Venmo for bridal registry purchases. The digital wallet lets users make digital payments — or split payments with other users, according to ReCode.
Online giant expands fulfillment operations in two states

Amazon continues to bolster its distribution fleet. The online giant will be adding a new 1 million-sq.-ft. fulfillment center in Monroe, Ohio — its fourth warehouse in The Buckeye State. Amazon will hire 1,000 associates to manage the picking, packing and shipping larger customer items, such as sports equipment, gardening tools, and pet food. Amazon already operates fulfillment centers in the cities of Etna and Obetz, and is preparing for the opening of a new facility in North Randall.
Study: Retailers triple same-day delivery offerings

Eager to get merchandise into shoppers’ hands the same day they place an order, 65% of retailers will offer same-day delivery within two years. This was according to the “2017 Digital Commerce Benchmark Survey,” from Boston Retail Partners (BRP).
Department store giant scales back holiday hiring

Fewer stores translates into reduced holiday hiring for Macy's this year. Macy's plans to hire a total of 80,000 workers for the holiday rush, down from about 83,000 last year. The company has been closing underperforming stores and currently operates some 70 fewer stores than it did last year.
Study: Consumers growing uneasy about increasing access to personal data

Despite the ramping up of global data regulations, most consumers are concerned about how companies collect and use their information. In fact, an overwhelming 96% of consumers are "somewhat" to "extremely" concerned about data collection and usage. This is understandable, as more than 75% engage in digital payment transactions at least once a month.