Boxing Day. The busiest shopping holiday of the year in North America. A prominent junior apparel retailer with 14 banners and 1,000 stores across Canada called us to help ensure their stock availability for the season sales. Within four days, our team implemented a warehouse and courier solution, increasing the daily container processing from two to seven, thus increasing sales.

THE CHALLENGE

The influence of quickly evolving clothing trends, stiff competition, and high demand makes it critical for the customer to always have sufficient stock and get products to store shelves on time.

Especially for Canada’s Boxing Day. An effective inventory management system is the difference between a sale and the shopper diverting to the competition.

Tried and failed

Previously, the retailer had used different forwarders to get all the products moving on time. However, they experienced delayed Halloween products and subsequently lost profits.

Finding an inventory solution able to meet the needs of the holiday shopping crowd was of the utmost importance.

SOLUTION

Already offering services for other customers along the west coast, our team began strategising the best solution to accommodate the retailer’s required volumes.

Some of the questions informing the right solution were:

• How to track inventory properly?
• How to know the products’ exact location?
• How to know where products will be shipped off to next?

It was soon apparent that to improve inventory processing, enable proper forecasting and secure the timely flow of goods to the stores, the optimum solution was establishing a new warehouse and connecting the supplier to our courier system.

Though working under a tight deadline, in a remarkable team effort fueled by the ever-present drive to turn challenges into solutions, our team set up an integrated warehouse and courier system in only four days.

Planning discussions were held on a Thursday; the implementation team assembled Friday and worked through the weekend. On Monday, the customer had what they needed:

An effective warehousing and distribution solution supporting their business goals.

The required warehouse build-out process was new to the customer, so to ensure a successful implementation, the process was carefully mapped out and followed in close collaboration between all parties involved. 

RESULTS

Receiving started the very next day, and seven containers were processed compared to the average of two previously processed in the same time frame.

With the new solution implemented, the retailer’s allocation system could be updated and organised per their protocols. Trucks got on the roads and the products into stores in time for Boxing Day.

Increased future sales and costs savings

Beyond Boxing Day, the solution enables the retailer to get more products to the stores faster, increasing available products for sale.

In addition, the solution decreases the storage, detention, and demurrage of containers that would previously sit at the port, waiting for the warehouse’s capacity to offload them, consequently providing cost savings to the customer.

Continuous Improvement

To ensure continuous improvement, our team implemented a customer survey to calibrate performance from the customer’s retail outlets to obtain feedback on on-time performance, ease of operation, communication, and overall experience with the service provider.

The feedback and results received were positive.

Through thoughtful, strategic and swift planning and execution, our skilled North American team uncomplicated the customer’s logistics, enabling them to meet their customers’ desire to unbox more junior apparel on Boxing Day. Challenge accepted. Problem solved.  

Time is rapidly running out for companies that have committed to halving their emissions by 2030. With each passing year, the target becomes more difficult to reach. The Transportation Action Guide launched at COP28 by SGL, alongside IKEA, Scania Group, and the Exponential Roadmap Initiative provides practical steps for companies to begin cutting emissions immediately.

The guide addresses Scope 3 supply chain emissions, which are among the most challenging to reduce because companies do not have direct control over them. It provides details on how to decarbonise the supply chain through concrete, readily available and scalable solutions for all transport modes.

‘We hear from many of our customers that translating emissions targets into action is a challenge,’ says Martin Andersen, Global Head of Sustainability & ESG, and continues:

The Transportation Action Guide demonstrates that immediate, concerted action can achieve steady reductions year-on-year. 

50% reduction by 2030 is still within reach

By reducing Scope 3 emissions by 10% per year starting from 2024, companies can achieve a 50% reduction by 2030. However, a delay of one or two years will put the target out of reach unless heavy investments are made. Instead, the guide recommends that companies should start reducing CO2 immediately to achieve their Scope 3 emissions target by 2030.  

An approx. 10% yearly reduction from 2024 will result in a 50% CO2 reduction by 2030. 

The emissions reduction roadmap

The guide provides a roadmap with five steps for companies to reduce their transport emissions:

1. Assess your company’s transport emissions

2. Reduce transport

3. Replace fossil fuels by implementing sustainable solutions

4. Rethink transportation

5. Measure and evaluate the results continuously

No two companies or supply chains are alike, so the right decarbonisation solutions will always differ. The reduction roadmap combines low carbon modes, biofuels, and low-emitting pre/post carriage transport solutions such as e-trucks.

The step-by-step process allows companies to factor in their specific needs, whether it’s achieving results fast, choosing cost-effective solutions, or improving their services.
‘Based on SGL Group’s CO2 Report, we start by establishing the customer’s transportation emissions across all modes of transport. Knowing where their efforts will have the most impact, we use our reduction solution catalogue to decide on the most optimum plan,’ explains Martin.

Building a reduction roadmap is possible and achievable for any company. 

Rethinking the road to reducing emissions

Mads Drejer, Global COO and CCO, emphasises that modifying supply chain and production strategies can simultaneously reduce CO2 emissions and costs.

‘Companies, for instance, requiring a fast transit time between Asia and Europe often rely heavily on airfreight. It’s environmentally and economically costly. Therefore, working with the customers on changing their logistics setup and combining alternative solutions can turn into a win-win-win, by reducing CO2 emissions, cutting costs and keeping fast deliveries. Some of these solutions even make the supply chain more resilient to disruptions, which is high priority,’ he says. He explains the win-win-win approach slowly gaining traction within the industry:

‘Rethinking the supply chain for long-term benefits is something we expect to see more of in the future. We believe cost savings and sustainability can go hand in hand.’

SGL Group’s recent customer collaborations include launching an electric truck with Alfa Laval, MAN Energy Solutions shifting to ocean biofuel on one of their highest traffic routes from Asia to Europe and Majid Al Futtaim shifting to sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) on shipments from Asia to the UAE.