Two thirds of a number of major North American sectors are shifting to DTC models

Since early 2020, multiple sectors have begun to shift towards the new model’s channels and lucrative opportunities

Sixty-six percent of North American organizations across e-commerce, manufacturing, retail, transport and logistics supply chains, and wholesale businesses, say their investment in the Direct-to-Customer (DTC) delivery model has increased since early 2020, with 35 percent citing significant increases.

By furthering their investments in DTC channels, 38 percent of organizations believe they can improve profit margins, and 31 percent are looking to reduce costs. Almost a quarter, 23 percent, of respondents identified the ability to personalize the service offering as a key driver. This is all according to a DTC report commissioned by Deposco, a leading provider of omnichannel supply chain fulfillment solutions, polling decision-makers across the US and Canada, which points to a dynamic, fast-growing DTC sector.

However, the research also highlights that businesses are facing a range of barriers related to people and technology when it comes to achieving their DTC aspirations. These include, in the former category, lack of skilled staff, highlighted by 24 percent of the survey, and culture of the company, by 17 percent, and in the latter, physical infrastructure, 23 percent, and difficulties identifying the right inventory for DTC, 14 percent.

The research highlights that many companies are now considering their entire range through DTC, if not, at least their complete categories of products. Organizations must ensure that they are investing both in technology and people to support them in ensuring that their systems and processes work at optimum efficiency levels. Part of the key to this will also be ensuring that the correct level of investment is put behind order management and fulfillment.