Volume 3  Issue 3 November 12, 2007

Demystifying E-Commerce

Amazon.com isn't the only company that knows e-commerce. F. Curtis Barry & Company, of Richmond, has built a profitable business in telling clients how to squeeze fatter margins out of Internet retailing.

By Peter Galuszka

“Pick, pack and ship” may be jargon to the average person, but it’s a hot trend in logistics, especially in the e-commerce field. “It’s when the company needs to send only one to three items worth maybe $60 to $100,” explains Curt Barry, president and founder of F. Curtis Barry & Company.

 

F. Curtis Barry

The job sounds simple, but it really isn’t. It can be harder to ship just a few items than full-carton or store orders. Picking the items, packing them, shipping them overnight delivery and processing returns is more demanding for e-commerce than traditional retail. Because Internet customers have a "point, click and deliver mentality," says Barry, some companies find themselves picking and shipping 80 percent of their orders the same day.

"You have to get operations management to re- conceptualize their logistical systems and centers," says Barry, whose nine-person, Richmond-based firm serves such marquee, multi-channel vendors as Tiffany & Company, L.L. Bean, West Marine, Nordstrom, Coldwater Creek, Neiman Marcus and outdoor outfitter Cabela's.

Crisscrossing the nation, Barry’s retail distribution consultants help clients with a wide range of disciplines: site location, center layout and design, workflow improvement, cost reduction, inbound and outbound freight cost, and the set up of logistics software systems, among others.

While F. Curtis Barry & Company serves multiple channels -- retail, e-commerce and catalog -- Barry notes that e-commerce holds the most immediate sales promise. “Growth in e-commerce is still in the double digits compared to single digits for traditional retail,” he says. Now hitting its stride after the bloody tech crash of 2000 that “got rid of the weak players,” e-commerce accounts for more than 50 percent of net sales among traditional catalog companies. More.

Rapid Response

With less than one day's notice, Spec Ops delivered the command-and-control center used by the California National Guard to keep the public informed about San Diego's wild fires.

Spec Ops, Inc. mobilized with the National Guard Bureau (NGB) Public Affairs Rapid Response Team (PARRT) in Arlington, Va., to provide the command and control equipment used in the California National Guard Joint Information Center.

With less than 24 hours notice, Spec Ops delivered PARRT equipment from its facility in Richmond, Va., for onsite operations at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, Calif. Spec Ops was also notified that its personnel may be required onsite for at least two weeks to assist the National Guard Bureau and the California National Guard with its command and control requirements during emergency operations.

 

Recently, Spec Ops was awarded a contract to provide the NGB with a suite of command and control hardware that would form the backbone of the Joint Enabling Team PARRT response to a disaster. The Spec Ops equipment

utilized by the PARRT in California includes several plasma and projector based Rapid Tactical Operations Centers, Video Distribution Units, fully integrated Tactical Tables, four satellite receivers, full internet connectivity, multimedia and telephone connections. (October 27, 2007) More.

Agility Healthcare Completes $8.25 Million Financing

Richmond-based Agility Healthcare Solutions, Inc., provider of automated workflow and resource-management solutions for the healthcare industry, has completed a $8.25 million financing plan by closing a $2 million credit facility with Square 1 Bank of Durham, N.C.

Agility’s AgileTrac Enteprise solution utilizes Real Time Location technology to transform the way hospitals track, manage and improve patient throughput while optimizing resource utilization and staff productivity.

“The Series A funding provides the financial resources to execute our growth plans and complete the development of our enterprise resource management and hospital workflow solution,” said CEO Francis X. Dirksmeier. (August 6, 2007) More.
 

Advanous Partners With PROS. Advanous, a provider of margin management solutions, is collaborating with PROS Holdings, Inc., a pricing and revenue optimization software company, on a system to improve margins and revenue growth for distribution companies.  (July 30, 2007) More.

CapTech Opens D.C. Office. CapTech has established an office in Vienna, outside Washington, D.C., to serve its growing commercial and federal client base, including financial services firms and the U.S. Navy. (August 15, 2007) More.