Three Challenges in Apparel Fulfillment – and How to Overcome Them

Constant change is a given in the fashion industry. Evolving customer expectations, increasing interest in sustainability, and advancements in technology and automation are sure to set up some businesses for failure. These are the companies that are not prepared to overcome certain difficulties.

However, the arise of challenges often means that there are opportunities for growth. You just need the right knowledge to do so. In this post, you will learn three of the common challenges faced in apparel fulfillment as well as how to overcome them.

High Volume of Returns

In apparel fulfillment, particularly e-commerce, the high volume of returns is a common issue. It has been reported that returns rates in the fashion industry can reach 40%, especially in online apparel and footwear. Customers give a vast array of reasons for returning products, with “does not fit” being the most frequent explanation given.

When return percentages are high, a business could see other issues occurring. There are increased costs to deal with, reverse logistics complexity, and inventory management problems to deal with. This isn’t including the markdown liability; delays in processing a return could result in the clothing item becoming obsolete or out of season. After all, fashion trends are quick to change.

Fortunately, there are ways to mitigate returns. Pre-purchase strategies, such as improving product descriptions and providing accurate size charts, will be useful. It is essential to strengthen quality control in the fulfillment process, too. Rigorous quality checks at the warehouse will ensure items are not damaged or defective before shipping.

It is also a good idea to identify serial returns. Some shoppers will abuse your return policy, either by “bracketing” or “wardrobing.” You should tailor the return options for these customers.

Volatile Demand and Seasonality

Fashion trends change quickly. This means demand forecasting and inventory management are even more difficult. The former, for example, could see your business overproducing or underproducing certain products if the data you use is incorrect. As these issues are directly related to seasonality and unpredictable demand, your business is at risk of significant operational and financial problems.

Whether your business is relatively new or experienced, there will always be issues to overcome. Seasonal peaks are one such issue. Whether you are dealing with Black Friday or the back-to-school season, a surge in orders is to be expected. This could put additional strain on your warehouse capacity, equipment, and labor resources. Bottlenecks and shipping delays are likely here.

Partnering with a third-party logistics (3PL) provider with retail fulfillment experience would be beneficial for overcoming this issue. This type of service offers solutions that are easy to scale with your business’s growth or seasonal peaks. 3PL partners, like Ryder, have the highly trained staff as well as automation and technology to handle peak volumes and seasonal upticks. You will no longer need to stress over inventory management, order fulfillment, and the like.

SKU Complexity

As each item comes in multiple colors, sizes, and styles, your business could struggle. This is due to SKU (Stock Keeping Unit) complexity. For anyone who doesn’t know, a SKU is the unit of measure that retailers use to identify and track specific product variations in their inventory. This is widely recognized as the primary factor making apparel logistics so tricky.

Why it is so complex? Well, a single style that is offered in five different colors and six sizes will generate 30 unique SKUs. These all require tracking, storage, and management. Maintaining accurate inventory levels in real-time s challenges because of this “matrix inventory,” and the risk of stockouts or overstocks are increased. There are also errors in order picking and warehouse organization to consider.

Leveraging the right technology is fundamental to overcome this issue. It is best to use a Warehouse Management System (WMS) that integrates with your platform. You will receive real-time, end-to-end visibility of inventory across all channels and locations with this. The chance of discrepancies and errors is greatly reduced because of such systems.

To conclude, apparel fulfillment might be a lucrative business, but it is a tough one. There are numerous challenges – high volume of returns, seasonality and volatile demand, and SKU complexity, to overcome. Using the advice in this post should enable you to do just that, though.