Designing retail supply chains for constant disruption

A guide for retail CSCOs and COOs moving supply chain planning from reactive to predictive amid tariff shocks, shifting consumer demand and AI disruption
A retail employee works on a laptop in front of neatly stacked clothing. Shelves behind her display folded shirts or pants in warm orange and red tones alongside darker garments. The woman stands at a counter, focused on the computer, suggesting inventory or store management tasks. The scene takes place in a modern retail environment with an organized, minimalist aesthetic.

Why retail supply chains fall behind

Seasonal cycles leave no margin for delay. This guide shows how unified data and agentic AI help retail and consumer goods organizations see, predict and respond to disruption before it reaches the customer.
Siloed systems

Disconnected ERPs, merchandising systems and logistics platforms create blind spots when a port closes or a tariff shifts overnight.
Consumer demand volatility

A viral moment or social commerce spike can render a seasonal supply plan obsolete in hours—faster than traditional forecasting can respond.
Untrusted data

64% of retail companies say their data is accessible to AI, but only 49% of it is actually usable.

A warehouse worker crouches in an aisle while scanning cardboard boxes with a handheld barcode scanner. Tall stacks of cartons line both sides of the industrial storage area, wrapped in plastic and organized on shelves. The person appears focused on inventory control, pointing at a specific box while using the scanner. The scene suggests efficient logistics operations in a modern distribution center.

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