Ship From Store: Retail's Necessity For Survival

How utilizing your store as a fulfillment center can improve the customer experience and drive revenue

Now more than ever, retailers are feeling the pressure to measure up to international competitors like Amazon. However, many still rely on central distribution centers, causing orders to oftentimes travel thousands of miles to reach their destination. This takes unnecessary time and money spent on shipping, and when customers are expecting their packages quickly and affordably, you need an array of distribution tactics to fulfill those orders. The million-dollar question is this: how do you fulfill customer needs while improving efficiencies and cutting costs? The answer is to think local – and that’s where in-store fulfillment comes into play.

Ship from Store (SFS) is a fulfillment process where retailers use stock from their brick-and-mortar stores to fulfill orders. Fulfilling orders this way transforms the store itself into a virtual distribution hub. Last year, about one of every three brick-and-click, omnichannel retailers had adopted a ship-from-store program, according to Forrester Research. By utilizing an SFS delivery system, you can shrink delivery times to keep your customers coming back - increasing sales and improving your margins. In fact according to Forrester, Kohl’s was able to decrease shipping time per order by ½ day by bringing their stores into their omnichannel strategy.