Two huge events COVID-19 and Brexit wreaked havoc on supply chains. Sellers have been facing a real struggle to receive goods and fulfill orders on time. Suppliers in India, China and South-East Asia have not been able to provide the required support to retailers.
As a result, many retailers have to deal with long lead times.
It’s now evident that these events will cause more uncertainty in 2021.
UK retailers have their access to EU fulfilment Network revoked as as result of Brexit regulations. Brands now have to quickly create new supply chains along with dealing with VAT complications.
As reported by Jungle Scout, 66% of sellers have been using Amazon fulfillment centers. Those will certainly face adverse effects of Brexit on their cross border trade.
That means retailers in Great Britain may have to split the goods for European customers in two different warehouses.
As far as sourcing of stock is concerned, sellers may now need to look for dual sourcing . That is, using two suppliers of identical products. Any issues with one supplier can be off-set by sourcing from another.
This will certainly reduce the risk of low or no stocks if suppliers are in two different geo locations.
The diversification could also be applied to fulfillment and shipping. For instance using Royal Mail for most of the domestic orders, Parcelhub for others etc.
That way, issues with one supplier doesn’t need to have a devastating impact on store-wide customer service.
A combination of local and international suppliers may be the key.
As reported by Mckinsey, when shoppers looked for out of stock products,
37% went to a different store to complete their purchase.
Any inconsistencies with stock availability lead consumers to try new brands or places to shop.
Remember, if you can’t fulfill an order, there will be retailers who will be able to serve your customers.
The key is a constant, reliable supply chain to maintain your stocks. This is now more important than ever to keep your customer’s loyalty and maintain the market share of your products.
ERAA Consulting Limited provide a complete virtual finance department solution with Xero and related Apps to ensure seamless experience for our clients. If you need any help in your eCommerce accounting, book keeping, tax, VAT on cross border sales, then feel free to contact us.
