Sourcing and procurement are a key element within the supply chain. Whether it’s raw materials for the production line or warehouse capacity near port. Proper planning, procurement and execution is a key to success. As the supply chain evolves and looks towards technology and data for support, it’s important to understand how to leverage technology without sacrificing anywhere else.
Technology was created to enhance what we do, not necessarily replace what we do. This especially applies in the supply chain and logistics industry, an industry propped up on strong relationships, trust and a little bit of tech. With the literal world at our fingertips, it’s easy to see how future generations will leverage technology, but will they miss out on building key relationships?
Today the process of procuring warehouse space is very manual and time consuming. Google or your “broker buddy” are the immediate solutions. When you search Google for a warehouse space, the results are not typically asset-based warehouses. Often, they are brokers, tech-enabled brokers or a big logos in supply chain who “do it all”. Google searches have become less results driven and more paid ad space driven. Once you muddle through the search results and finally find a warehouse, you get to pick up the phone and ask some very redundant questions.
- How much space do you have?
- Do you do D2C fulfillment?
- Do you have racks?
- How big is your truck yard?
- Do you have trucks?
In a world where you can buy anything from hamburgers to houses in a digital marketplace, you should certainly be able to procure warehouse space, right? Wrong.
Our mission was to change the industry standard and “Perfect the Art of Procurement” with technology. We started in the warehousing industry, laser focused on finding the best warehouses in the world and asking them some key questions about their space and services. From there, we developed an intuitive marketplace for those warehouses to digitally showcase capacity and receive opportunities. We leverage AI and virtual touring technology to ensure we give our shippers enhanced visibility into the business, mitigating any unnecessary conversations.
For our shippers, the marketplace has been a valuable resource to enhance and accelerate sourcing efforts. They can educate themselves on capacity, infrastructure, services, rates and market conditions before formally engaging with the warehouse. This ensures they’re engaging with the right warehouse, not just someone who has space. After you’ve identified the 3PL is a good operational and financial fit, you can then start focusing on building your relationship. The importance of directly communicating with suppliers is underrated. The supply chain is not always flowers and rainbows, therefore challenging conversations must be had in order to find the right
solutions. Our CEO Matt Fain always says, “Understanding the good, the bad and the ugly is crucial to making good decisions.” The need for a liaison or middleman in warehousing procurement is minimal, if not completely unnecessary. Empower the relationship with technology, but never let technology over power the relationship. Our patented Digital Space Matching® technology reduces procurement timelines from several weeks, to just a few hours! By adopting a frictionless process and intuitive technology anyone can now “Perfect the Art of Procurement”.
To learn more about PopCapacity® and what we are building please follow and like us on social media platforms or email us at hello@popcapacity.com
