42 • November / December 2026• abasto.com BY JULIO IBÁÑEZ JULIO@JULIOIBANEZ.NET Retail Academy When Logistics Also Drives Sales O nce again, we’ve reached one of the most important sea- sons for our stores. Christmas transforms our businesses: foot tra- ffic increases, we stock seasonal pro- ducts, we ramp up promotions, and additional displays appear in virtua- lly every department. But something else happens as well, something those of us who have worked for years in supermarket ope- rations know all too well, precisely when our teams are busiest and we’re bringing the most additional work into the store. New products arrive: different boxes, special promotions, mar- keting materials, and displays that someone has to receive, unpack, or- ganize, set up, place within the sales floor, and then keep stocked. But why do we keep doing work in the store that could be handled at the factory or distribution center? For many years, we’ve worked to make manufacturing more efficient, improve distribution centers, opti- mize routes, and reduce delivery ti- mes. However, there’s still one final leg of the process we may not have paid enough attention to: the one be- tween the box the supermarket recei- ves and the consumer’s hands. There lies a huge opportunity. Independent Retailers Don’t Just Need More Products One of the biggest challenges we currently face in independent re- tail isn’t finding products; there are thousands. Manufacturers and dis- tributors continually visit our stores to present new brands, flavors, sizes, and promotional opportunities. The problem begins afterward. Where do we place the product? How much space does it need? Who sets up the display? How many cases should we buy? How will we restock it? What do we do with the remaining inventory once the promotion ends? These questions matter even more when we’re talking about new or sea- sonal items. In previous editions of Retail Aca- demy, we’ve talked extensively about the need to manage our shelf space properly, improve displays, analyze product assortments, and observe how our customers’ shopping carts have changed. Now we must take it a step further. Product innovation has true value only when we can translate it into effective in-store execution. That’s why manufacturers, dis- tributors, and retailers must think less about shipping boxes and more about delivering sales solutions. From the Box to a Ready-To- Sell Solution We’re seeing more and more pac- kaging and logistics alternatives de- signed to simplify operations at the point of sale. We’re talking about concepts like Retail Ready Packaging or Shelf Ready Packaging—packa- ging that allows a box to be placed directly on the shelf, opened easily, and essentially become part of the product display itself. There are also the well-known floor displays, trays, sidekicks, coun- ter displays, promotional units, and complete displays that can arrive pre-assembled or even stocked with merchandise. The concept behind all of them is quite simple: to reduce the number of steps required from the moment we receive a product until our cus- tomer can purchase it. A traditional box primarily serves a logistical function. A retail-ready solution also serves a commercial function. While this difference may seem small, when we multiply it by hundreds of SKUs, dozens of emplo- yees, and thousands of work hours over a year, it takes on a whole new dimension. For large chains with extensive merchandising, planogram, restoc- king, and execution structures, this can mean greater efficiency, but for many independent supermarkets, it can mean even more. It can help them compete more effectively with fewer resources. • Continues on page 44 • ADVICE