eCom Logistics Podcast

For this episode of the eCom Logistics Podcast, we welcome Steve Bozicevic, Sr. Director of New Product Development and GM of Flow Direct, Flexport. Cross-border shipping has evolved in the years since COVID began. From prioritizing speed and reliability, ecommerce brands now focus instead on managing costs and cashflow.

Steven discusses how they serve the SMB market and help them grow by keeping customers happy. He also digs into managing inflation during times of uncertainty and what the future holds for the logistics industry, and in Toronto in particular where Ninaad and Steve are currently based.

ABOUT STEVE

Steve Bozicevic has been in the cross-border ecommerce and logistics technology industry since 2000. Mr. Bozicevic started his career at Borderfree.com as a software developer, then moved on to product management until 2010 when he joined Pitney Bowes and formed the Global Ecommerce division, where as Vice President of Product Management, he developed products and technology that launched and powered Ebay's Global Shipping Program.

In 2016, Steve joined Amazon as the first member of the Amazon Global Logistics organization where he spent nearly six years building global trade-related technology, products and operations to facilitate B2C exports and B2B imports for Retail and FBA. In 2021, Mr. Bozicevic joined Flexport as Sr. Director of New Product Development. In this role, Steve is also General Manager of Flexport Flow Direct, an ocean freight shipping product for ecommerce SMBs; and is responsible for ecommerce platform and marketplace integrations, including the partnership with Shopify.

HIGHLIGHTS

• 03:20 Steve's journey in cross-border shipping and building technologies
• 08:50 Flow Direct offers speed and reliability in international shipping for SMBs
• 14:48 Tips to manage cash flow and costs in Q4
• 25:23 A growing talent pool for supply chain in Toronto

QUOTES

12:24 COVID transformed business' priorities to speed and reliability - Steve: "Speed was important, but reliability was more important. Knowing when it's going to get there allows the customer to plan ahead on their supply chain and say, If I know it's going to be 20 days or 40 days or 60 days, it's reliable, I can manage my POs, I can manage my cash flow according to reliability."

15:51 Manage cash flow with just-in-time fulfillment - Steven: "Cash is important and how do you best manage your cash flow? In my opinion, similarly to how manufacturing supply chains moved to just-in-time production, I think just-in-time fulfillment is a similar kind of approach. Ordering smaller quantities more frequently, being more reactive to demand trends, making sure that you always got something in transit."

Find out more about Steve in the links below:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sbozicevic/
• Website: https://www.flexport.com/

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For this episode of the eCom Logistics Podcast, we welcome Edward Hertzman, Executive Vice President of Fairchild Media and Founder and President of Sourcing Journal. Edward shares the trends in supply chain he is observing today post-COVID and beyond. 

From the way Amazon changed logistics forever and its effects in consumer expectations as a result, to the importance of remaining agile and how to do it, Edward takes a deep dive into how global supply chains will look like in the near future and how to maintain inventory to scale.

ABOUT EDWARD

Edward Hertzman received a degree in economics from NYU and spent more than a decade working as a top executive for major sourcing companies all over the world, including Synergies Worldwide and Pearl Global. Hertzman sits on the Board for Delivering Good, a charitable organization that channels the resources of the fashion industry to those in need.

In 2009, in response to a need in the industry, he founded Sourcing Journal Online. With more than 75,000 subscribers, Sourcing Journal Online is the largest trade journal devoted to the sourcing apparel and textile industry supply chain in the world. 

In August 2020, he was promoted to executive vice president of Fairchild Media, tasked with growing the businesses of all Fairchild Media titles in his new position, while continuing to lead the day-to-day operations at Sourcing Journal. He will also oversee the growth of Fairchild Media’s strategic content studio, bolstering the creation of engaging, interactive content to help industry partners stand out in an increasingly competitive landscape.

HIGHLIGHTS

• 07:07 DTC is dying and mergers are set to happen
• 13:08 Surviving devaluation and managing inventory for what's to come
• 20:23 Keeping sourcing lean and agile in fashion
• 25:23 Nearshoring and diversifying manufacturing and sourcing capabilities
• 30:22 Regulations and sharing the responsibility of sustainability in supply chain management

QUOTES

14:27 On pushing back on the growth-at-all-costs mindset, Edward says, "Just don't acquire customers saying, Oh, the lifetime value is X and never really realize that. Don't buy inventory without testing the product. Find retail partners that are gonna support you, not just be transactional."

31:09 As regulations will push for tangible sustainability measures from retail, Edward says, "I think there's only two ways to incentivize people or two ways to get people to change. One is through incentive and one is through repercussions. And what I mean by that is either you're gonna pay me more to do something or you're gonna punish me for not doing it."

39:48 To survive the recession, Edward suggests, "I think that if people don't think short term, the same way I say don't buy a million T-shirts when you really only need five. Don't just start laying off to make the quarter. It's very hard to find talent in this space. Don't stop investing in technology to make the quarter because you're gonna need that technology."

Find out more about Edward and Sourcing Journal in the links below:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/edward-hertzman-2401b38/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/EdwardHertzman
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/edwardhertzman/
• Website: https://sourcingjournal.com/

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For this episode of the eCom Logistics Podcast, we welcome James Malley, the "Cartonization Magnate" and Founder and CEO of Paccurate. Reducing the amount of air in packages is not just good for profits, it’s critical for the environment too.

James discusses the complex but critical question of how to reduce air in packages with cartonization. He digs into the low-hanging fruit that companies can initiate to begin cartonization, as well as raises awareness of the gravity of the waste issue worldwide. 

HIGHLIGHTS

• 02:58 Cartonization: Packing mistakes and the factors that drive them
• 14:59 Amazon packing practices are practical but waste is a major issue
• 18:59 Cartonizing realizes hidden savings per square foot
• 28:47 Lead the shift because the waste problem needs to be resolved

QUOTES

19:36 Bad cartonization is still better than no cartonization - James: "The good news is there's a ton of low-hanging fruit, so if you don't have any cartonization, use bad cartonization. It'll get you at least some of the way there to get you started and help you keep your margins intact."

27:04 The data proves that the waste problem is much more significant - James: "My team is very motivated by this idea that we could put a dent in some of the waste in supply chain. And I think it's kind of a rude awakening, a little bit, when you start digging into the data of how bad things actually are. From a packaging standpoint, we're like oh, we'll do paper fill and cardboard's better than plastic, and truth is it is but not by as much as we would hope."

Find out more about James in the links below:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jmalley/
• Website: https://paccurate.io/

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For this episode of the eCom Logistics Podcast, we welcome Erhan Musaoglu, Founder and CEO of Logiwa. Seeing a need, Erhan developed their own high-volume online order fulfillment execution system that functions much more holistically than just a WMS.

Any e-commerce business needs even the barest fulfillment execution system to realize greater productivity in its warehouses and be able to ship orders quickly and efficiently. Erhan also discusses market trends like product returns and the current climate with tight delivery windows. 

HIGHLIGHTS

05:24 the day you landed - Moving to the US and building a leading WMS

09:27 i used to implement - Differences between WMS and order fulfillment solution

16:07 first of all - Warehousing and WMS are crucial for an e-commerce business's success

21:20 you don't need - Facilitate quicker UPH with an inexpensive fulfillment execution system

28:28 we constantly - Trends in the market: Adapting to unique workflows, package optimization, and labor

34:12 how do you - Multi SKU management in a warehouse

QUOTES

05:50 On moving to the US and focusing on online order fulfillment - Erhan: “You cannot do everything perfect. You have to select one vertical, you have to select one solution, and you have to stick with it. And you have to make it better than anyone else."

14:46 Implement a good warehousing and fulfillment system - Ninaad: "Just because you have a warehouse management system does not translate into it being a good fulfillment system. They are 2 different universes. I would go to say that a fulfillment system is just as far apart from a traditional warehousing system as a store operations system is from a distribution center."

18:04 Warehousing is the top consideration of e-commerce businesses - Erhan: “Warehouse is the most crucial element for an online business. Otherwise, you are going to fail. If you cannot pick, if you cannot pack, and if you cannot ship faster, you're going to fail." 

Find out more about Erhan in the links below:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erhanmusaoglu/

Website: 

https://www.logiwa.com/

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For this episode of the eCom Logistics Podcast, we welcome Chad Rubin, Founder and CEO of Profasee. As one of the pioneering Amazon sellers, Chad has kept up with the updates over the years and now offers a dynamic pricing platform to enable Amazon brands to predict the perfect price at each precise moment.

Chad dives into how data science is the competitive advantage brands need to profit on Amazon. He highlights that brands should embrace Amazon as it simply is the best place to meet buyers where they are buying. Finally, Chad discusses how Shopify and Amazon can coexist and how AWD is changing the 3PL game.

HIGHLIGHTS

04:08 Solving problems: Find friction first then refine the solution

10:40 Selling on Amazon is profitable with data science as a competitive advantage

22:07 Brands should meet buyers where they buy, which is Amazon

28:16 Fix the pricing of AWD and it will dominate the market

38:10 Shopify and Amazon can coexist in the same space

QUOTES

19:35 Data science is the competitive advantage for selling on Amazon - Chad: “The strong will survive and one of the ways of being strong is actually getting an edge. And that edge right now, the only edge that they're gonna be able to get, because if Thrasio has 20,000 SKUs to manage, they need data science.”

26:53 Offer Amazon exclusives for social proof - Chad: “People go on Amazon, a lot of times they never leave Amazon. So perhaps it's important you have your exclusives, let's just say your Caraway and you're selling pots and pans in Shopify.”

“And you have some really beautiful, elegant product. Well, put your hero SKU or your economy SKU on Amazon because then you get social proof and you have your other color variations maybe off Amazon.”

45:20 Shopify and Amazon can coexist to address different segments of the market - Chad: "I believe that you can coexist in the world and be on Amazon and have your own storefront simultaneously and add different value. And, certainly, you can do a lot more experimentation with your own Shopify site. But I don't think that they're mutually exclusive anymore."

Find out more about Chad in the links below:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itschadrubin/
• Website: https://profasee.com/
• Email: [email protected]

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For this episode of the eCom Logistics Podcast, we welcome Ben Gordon, Managing Partner and CEO of Cambridge Capital. A rich history in the logistics industry made way for Ben to start his private equity firm that invests in the supply chain sector.

He shares the many nuggets of wisdom he has learned over the years, first as a founder, and second as an investor. Ben also discusses the soft skills founders need to be successful, including humility, a genuine desire to listen, and the ability to listen to their market.

HIGHLIGHTS

• 02:29 Learning about logistics and starting an advisory business
• 09:09 The top 3 advice for founders 
• 24:54 Pivoting: The micro fulfillment space & robotic automation investment
• 34:30 Investing in cold storage and reverse logistics
• 39:12 As an entrepreneur and investor: Be on point and have a genuine desire to listen

QUOTES

11:18 Listen to the market and learn to pivot - Ben: "The number one key for a successful entrepreneur, not just to raise money but to build a business, is put yourself in the shoes of the market. And the market could be different. It could be what does the customer think, what does the investor think, what does the strategic partner think?"

40:13 Sell with story and substance - Ben: "If you're an entrepreneur looking to raise money, I think number one, gotta have a clear pitch, gotta be able to tell the story elevator-style, 30 seconds, a lot of entrepreneurs, the story takes too long and you lose the audience's attention. You've got to be able to have the hook in 30 seconds. And that's one.” 

"Two, it's not just the story. There's also the substance which is a proof-point of success. I've got a lot of decks and, generally speaking, the ones that I'm the most interested in are ones where the deck shows a simple statement of what's the problem, what's their solution, customer case study, and clear results."

Find out more about Ben in the links below:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bengordon18/
• Website: https://cambridgecapital.com/
• Email: [email protected]
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/benjaminhgordon

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For this episode of the eCom Logistics Podcast, we welcome Radu Palamariu, Managing Director of Europe and Asia Pacific at Alcott Global Founder. He is also the host of the Leaders in Supply Chain and Logistics podcast.  

Radu shares many valuable insights into logistics and shaping leadership within a company's supply chain talent. He discusses the characteristics that attribute to quality logistics leadership, how to leverage this, and understanding the impact of diversity in this environment as well.

HIGHLIGHTS

• 07:06 Why Chief Supply Chain Officers (CSCOs) make great CEOs
• 21:45 Key characteristics to look for in quality logistics leadership talent
• 31:00 Diversity in supply chain leadership

QUOTES

09:12 Why those with supply chain backgrounds make it to CEO positions - Radu: "The density of people that come from an operations and supply chain background that will make it to CEO is going to be higher. Because now they are making it to the board conversations and, of course, the board makes the decision of who is the next CEO it's just a normal transition"

12:14 Amazon's growth through supply chain - Radu: "Ultimately, Amazon built a logistics machine. They win on logistics, they win on supply chain. Of course, they are an e-commerce market place ultimately that's where they win."

26:51 Insights on finding value when hiring somebody - Radu: Look for the mindset, look for the attitude, and also place bets on people. I think drive, motivation, and willingness to make it work are much more important than actual expertise on a lot of things." 

Find out more about Radu and check out his book in the links below:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/radupalamariu/
• Book: https://sourcetosold.com/
• Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/leaders-in-supply-chain-and-logistics/id1263842780

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For this episode of the eCom Logistics Podcast, we welcome Rick Watson, Founder and CEO of RMW Commerce Consulting, as well as the host of his own podcast called The Watson Weekly. 

Rick gives an insider's look into CommerceHub's acquisition of ChannelAdvisor and shares rich insights on Amazon's new service called Amazon Warehousing and Distribution (AWD). He digs into its ripple effect on 3PL and how this service challenges competitors like Shopify and their own sellers' entire supply chains. 

HIGHLIGHTS

• 04:00 CommerceHub acquires ChannelAdvisor 
• 09:09 AWD: Taking on 3PL and revitalizing Buy with Prime 
• 21:02 Shopify: Prioritizing brand experience and building long-term logistical infrastructure 

QUOTES

12:24 Reducing friction in FBA - Rick: "Amazon thinks in terms of kaizen, like continuous improvement, and if there's any little friction between those things, Amazon is going to try to eliminate it as long as it has the eventual goal of making sure that this item is in stock just 5% more than their competition, then Amazon wins because Amazon is caring about that 5% that they're losing through the replenishment process." 

17:17 Amazon enters markets with Prime as their leverage - Rick: "Do we want to fight UPS and Fedex at their strength? Does that make any sense? Let's go where we have some leverage. What is the biggest leverage of Amazon? Prime." 

32:19 Shopify creates a brand experience unlike Amazon - Rick: To Amazon, a brand is a vendor. The customer is the customer. And so that is really the single point of differentiation that Shopify can hang their hat on, which I think works for a large percentage of the market, especially for the big guys.  

Find out more about Rick Watson in the links below: 

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rickwatsonecommerce/
• Website: https://www.rmwcommerce.com/
• Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-watson-weekly-your-essential-ecommerce-digest/id1577388393

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In this episode, Andrew, Ninaad, and Dan look closely at the importance of creating a win-win situation in Client-3PL relationships. 
 

Fulfillment is a complicated series of actions that eCommerce companies take to deliver orders on time. As Andrew explains, merchants will face complications and challenges such as weather, technology, and labor challenges, especially when warehouses have multiple clients. And when fulfillment providers cannot keep up with brand growth, it can significantly affect customer experience, NPS scores, returns, and refund rates, to name a few. This is why merchants need to focus on building relationships instead of just working with their service providers. As Ninaad, Dan and Andrew discuss, building confidence on both sides includes having accurate invoicing and forecasting, thorough node strategy planning, and even in-person visits. 

Why is this important? Because the fulfillment side is where you make or break the customer experience and when they're not happy, be ready to face some angry customers… 

 On this week's episode of the eCom Logistics podcast, find out: 

·      Seasonal brands and customer expectations

·      Delivery expectation  

·      Outsourcing fulfillment and the relationship  

·      Node Strategy depends on your business   

·      3PL invoicing  

·      SLAs   

Mentioned in this episode:

Dr. Squatch 

Tipsy Elves

Fulfillment IQ

ShipHawk

ProShip

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Diversifying your carrier network is key to competing in today's market. 

The pandemic has shifted many things in the eCommerce space, including how parcel management is executed. In the show, we explore how the postal service and top three carriers experienced significant challenges through 2020 and the actions they took to hold onto their position in the market. Through a more innovative and entrepreneurial push, Nate explains that greater emphasis can be seen from carriers on orchestrating resources towards the first, middle and final mile so that the network can become more flexible concerning volume, dynamic lanes, and managed capacity with partners. 

Why is this important? Brands can customize and design solutions specific to their network needs instead of conforming to the national provider network, which can be less flexible.  

What else you can expect on today's eCom Logistics Podcast episode:  

·       How the big three carriers have positioned themselves and how they differ (4:05)

·       How are emerging tech-enabled providers growing in the market and continue to provide value within that segmentation?  (12:14)

·       Relationships with carriers (18:45)

·       Enhancing customer experience by personalizing on-time delivery (31:38)

·       Peak 2022 season, how will it play out? (37:10)

Subscribe and Keep Learning!

If you’re a logistics leader looking to scale sustainably, don’t miss out! Subscribe for more expert strategies on tackling modern supply chain challenges.

Be sure to follow and tag the eCom Logistics Podcast on LinkedIn and YouTube