With the economy still on the mend, economists are easy targets for humor. I wouldn’t doubt that many may even believe that an economist is someone who gets rich explaining to others why they are poor. The same can be said about supply chain industry forecasters who have wide ranging opinions on whether companies have learned their lesson from the recession. That point is clearly illustrated in this recent lessons learned article. The theme focuses on whether businesses will change their supply chain practices in a post-recession world. If the opinions are any indication, the answer is no, and maybe yes.

Have companies changed their supply chain practices? For years, the concepts of supply chain collaboration and visibility have been preached as the cornerstones of everything from inventory management to fleet maintenance. Yet, when you still have over 600,000 warehouses in North America without a computerized inventory management system, you realize that preaching...

A few days ago, I ventured along the waterfront whose route took me along the Port of San Francisco. The port by the bay has certainly seen better days, and many of the buildings that once housed bustling canneries and fishing outposts are now mostly populated by tech startups and restaurants. These days, port activity is more of an afterthought, if thought about at all, for most people. Honestly, I likely wouldn’t give it much thought either if I weren’t in the logistics industry. The reality is that port activity can provide a clear snapshot of the economy and its direction.

Port traffic in the key regions across the states has seen marked improvement supplemented by jobs. For example, Los Angeles saw imports rise 32% and exports by 13% from last year, while Long Beach experienced increases of 27% and 2%. These numbers point to several things: a significant rise in traffic, increased hiring in dock workers, and a rising trade imbalance. Container volume also...

There’s a saying that says your product has made it once it’s been counterfeited. If that’s the case, then the Amazon Kindle may be an overwhelming success. Not to make light of an ever increasing problem that costs companies billions of dollars and a significant loss of jobs annually, but fake Kindles are making the rounds. The fate of the Kindle is no aberration, and serves as yet another example in the annals of offshore sourcing and fakery.

Don’t misunderstand my perspective—offshore sourcing is a strategic and in many cases, essential part of a company’s business strategy. For better or worse, the world’s different economies rely on it to ensure productivity, demand generation, and profitability. But with the benefits of offshoring come significant risks, and the Kindle is the latest example. When establishing supply chains overseas in low-wage countries, the security of intellectual property is vulnerable. Whether products are copied or specs are “borrowed”,...

As countries evolve economically, competitive advantages change which may be what is now happening to China’s manufacturing industry. Earlier this month, I wrote about how the rising number of worker stoppages at China-based factories and how this was a potential sign of things to come for U.S. companies. It’s becoming more obvious that the cheap “Made in China” era may soon be coming to an end.

For more than two decades, China (along with Japan) had the monopoly on cheap manufacturing due to a large labor force and low wages. I remember during the 1980s when the mass migration of manufacturing overseas from the U.S. took place to fuel the growing demand of goods. At the time, the highly educated U.S. consumer had the money and resources to buy, while China was more than happy to meet our needs at a cheap price. It changed the economic fortunes both here and abroad with lasting effects that continue to impact us today.

Evolution, progress, advancement…whatever...

Just the other day, I was thinking about that classic (is it old enough to qualify as a classic yet?) end-of-the-world flick “Outbreak” that features Dustin Hoffman running around mostly in a jumpsuit. Basically, an infected primate is inadvertently captured abroad and brought to the United States. As you can guess, this has a major impact on the residents of a local town. Along with the drama and expected storyline, the movie provides a good illustration of how easily events can spiral out of control.

Ironically, current events with Abercrombie & Fitch provide a mini case study of how a weak link somewhere in the supply chain can have almost disastrous effects not only for revenues but on public perception. Just last week, bedbugs were found to have infested the company’s Hollister Street location in New York and a few days later, the South Seaport store. Even now, the infected stores have yet to reopen. Customers who recently made purchases at A&F, especially...