The National Retailers Federation (NRF) is hosting Supply Chain 360, a conference in Cleveland, on June 20 to 21.
Attendees will take a holistic look at the modes and methods needed to build a faster, more sustainable, and resilient retail supply chain, Jon Gold, NRF’s vice president of sustainability, told The Epoch Times.
Retailers also will discuss domestic alternatives for some products to decrease dependence on imports, and explore more efficient methods to help determine where products are in the pipeline at any time—from raw materials, to when goods are manufactured at plants, and when they are moved from port to port, or arrive for delivery, Gold said.
Washington-based NRF is the world’s largest retail trade association.
It represents department and discount stores, home goods and specialty stores, small businesses, grocers, wholesalers, chain restaurants, and internet retailers from the United States and more than 45 countries.
Retail is the nation’s largest private-sector employer, supporting 1 in 4 U.S. jobs—42 million working Americans contributing $2.6 trillion to annual gross domestic product, according to the organization’s website.
The conference is being held at a time when the United States is dealing with a baby formula shortage, high food prices for beef, poultry, and dairy products, and pet food shortages, store managers and clerks at several retailers and grocers say.
Supply Chain 360 features a lineup of about 80 speakers including Tractor Supply Co. CEO Hal Lawton, who will be the keynote speaker.
Gold said: “Supply chain issues have impacted everybody the last few years. We’re going to be looking at all the challenges retailers are facing today, and ways they can be more sustainable.
“Supply chains are critical to the survival of a retailer. They are the lifeline of retail and customers want more sustainability. The demand for goods, whether it’s for apparel, electronics, home goods, or toys, has outpaced the availability.
“We started thinking about ways retail could be more sustainable about the time the tariffs on China started [2017], and thinking about alternatives so we wouldn’t have to be as reliant on China for goods.
“Right now, no one has the capacity China does, and it’s going to take a little bit of time to change that. It can’t be done overnight. Retailers will discuss options and alternatives so they don’t have all their eggs in one basket.”
Gold said that the majority of retailers are “import-dependent,” but didn’t know a specific percentage of products that retailers stock from foreign countries.
Other speakers from major retail groups include Zach Freeze, Walmart’s director of sustainability; Joe Berti, IBM vice president of product sustainability; Roxanne Flanagan, Walgreens senior vice president and chief supply chain officer; Jack McAneny, vice president of global sustainability for Proctor and Gamble; Carlos Londono, Chipotle Mexican Grill vice president and head of its supply chain; and Gabriel Arriaga, senior vice president of the supply chain for Kroger Co.
Scot Case, NRF vice president of supply chain and customs, told The Epoch Times that the supply issues were partly caused by workforce shortages, resulting in an inability to produce goods to meet supply and demand at plants, as well as in the delivery stages.
“Retailers would like to do a better job at forecasting when they‘ll receive products and if they’ll have enough to meet the demand for customers,” Case said. “Right now, retailers are preparing for back-to-school sales and the holiday seasons.”
Futuristic components to the retail industry, mostly involving shipping, will be discussed at Supply Chain 360, Case said.
