New logistics technologies in improving customer value in retailing service

Abstract

Today's business success to a great extent depends on logistics and supply chain performance. The role of logistics has never been as critical as it is today. This paper identifies a series of market trends and technological advances which are likely to affect Croatian retail logistics over the next 10–15 years. The results of the study conducted on the sample of Croatian retailing managers reveal that Croatian retailers have not yet recognized the importance of new logistics technology and that they do not use them sufficiently. Although retail sector is facing significant pressures to offer high level of service, knowledge and skills of their employees and to reduce cost as well, Croatian retailers do not see the opportunity of Internet based technologies to improve the knowledge of their employees as the most important source of the company. They use some Internet technologies mostly in advertising, the process of ordering and all transactions with suppliers, and the communication with other business entities.