Supply chain management is crucial among businesses since it helps develop quality products and attract more consumers. In a business setting, the supply chain involves a network of organizations, information, people, and activities involved in delivering a product or service to the end consumer (Tanwar, 2022). The objective of a company’s supply chain is to deliver quality products and services, making a business remain competitive. Consequently, supply chain decisions are important since they determine business success. Additionally, supply chain decisions help clients regulate the rate at which they consume a particular product (Tanwar, 2022). Nike is one of the companies that have effectively managed its supply chain.
Although Nike’s supply chain is efficient due to technological integration, it is vulnerable to a hostile business environment. Upon the emergence of COVID-19, Nike was one of the companies that were greatly affected (Cariou & Notteboom, 2022). The governmental directives to lock down populated areas led to the closure of the company’s retail stores. Additionally, Nike’s human resources were negatively affected by the strict social-distance rules (Cariou & Notteboom, 2022). The hostile business environment affected Nike’s supply chain, leading to decreased profitability. Moreover, the reduced employee population led to the adoption of technology, which was very costly to the company. The COVID-19 pandemic was detrimental to Nike’s supply chain and consequent productivity.
Nike’s supply chain management took various actions to curb the COVID-19 impact on its supply chain. First, the company’s transportation department collaborated with third-party logistics companies that were near warehouses and storage facilities to reach their clients quickly (Cariou & Notteboom, 2022). The fast delivery system made Nike’s clients receive products on time as before COVID-19. Second, the company switched its logistics operations from the retailers to the clients directly (Free & Hecimovic, 2020). Therefore, Nike customers were no longer required to make purchases from the retail shops. Instead, they would place an order online through Nike’s e-commerce platform and have it delivered to their doorstep. Last, the company emphasized the use of its e-commerce for product promotion (Free & Hecimovic, 2020). The changes in Nike’s supply chain made the business stay afloat amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
References
Cariou, P., & Notteboom, T. (2022). Implications of COVID-19 on the US container port distribution system: import cargo routing by Walmart and Nike. International Journal of Logistics Research and Applications, pp. 1–20. Web.
Free, C., & Hecimovic, A. (2020). Global supply chains after COVID-19: the end of the road for neoliberal globalization? Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, 34(1), pp. 58-84. Web.
Tanwar, S. (2022). Blockchain for supply chain management. Studies in Autonomic, Data-Driven and Industrial Computing, pp. 321–353. Web.