The Material Handling Blog

Although 2020 has been an unpredictable year with unprecedented commerce demands, this year worldwide ecommerce sales have already increased by 18% more than last year. That’s $3.5 trillion USD, according to Shopify. And, it’s expected to nearly double by 2023 to more than $6.5 trillion. Chances are that planning was already underway to shift processes to accommodate for the expected growth in ecommerce before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. However, the state of the world during the pandemic greatly shortened the time frame in which updates and changes needed to be made. Companies everywhere scrambled to quickly pivot based on their unique situations.

E-commerce fulfillment is on the rise and investing in automating these facilities streamlines operational processes. Through the use of robotic ASRS, supply chain software, and conveyor sortation, fulfillment centers are beginning to look a lot like high-tech versions of Santa's workshop. Read: The Magic Behind Online Shopping

In order to be best prepared for seasonal peaks such as Black Friday and its potential 10:1 volume spike, distribution leadership must begin looking at how their warehouses are set up.

For the very first time in American consumer shopping history, Cyber Monday generated more revenue than Black Friday. In total, US e-commerce exceeded $400B in 2015, up 25% YOY (year over year). Soon the US Commerce Department will announce that fourth quarter sales accounted for nearly 40% of online sales for the year. Read: The Impact of Cyber Monday Beating Black Friday