QUESTION #3 One of the many things that Amazon (the large online books and elect

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QUESTION #3 One of the many things that Amazon (the large online books and electronics retailer i the USA) does very well is product distribution. They are able to move their many products such as books and clothes to places all over the world. It seems that almost everyone uses Amazon.com to make a purchase. One of the reasons why this is possible is because the firm manages it supply chain very well. However, it was suggested that if they were based here in the Caribbean, maybe they would not have been as successful. Here is your chance to prove them wrong. Imagine that someone came to you and asked you to help them establish a business here in the region, in a Caricom member state of your choosing. This company does what Amazon does, that that you would need to work out the logistics of purchasing, storing, m and manipulating the firms' inventory and interacting with supplier eans selling books, electronics and a number of other items, online. This also means oving, managing s and producers and movers. In addition to that, the management of the firm has stated that initially, they will only offer their products to people who reside in Caricom countries. Therefore please state what you would do to ensure that this firm is able to manage its operations effectively and efficiently and thus be in a position to grow and develop successfully 20 marlte

Explanation / Answer

Since we are talking about a business similar to that of Amazon in one of the Caricom states, Supply chain marks the most important factor which needs to be taken care of. Since the states are mainly surrounded by water bodies the use of marine route can be used extensively to our advantage. Following are some of the pointers which can help our business grow in the geographic conditions that the business operates in.

1. Vertical Integration:
                The business can integrate with the suppliers at other distant locations which will solve the problem of logistics to a greater extent. Most of the goods which our business sells will be available at other locations as well, by integrating with them and serving our customers with those local suppliers will reduce our cost and hence profitability will increase. Any problem of logistics, if any will now affect the only limited number of goods.

2. Vendor Managed Inventory:
                With the advent of technology, Vendor managed inventory will help us in analyzing the stocks of particular products and hence will allow us to plan in advance for the inventory situation. This will greatly reduce redundancy in logistics and supply chain movement thus reducing costs.

3. Warehouse:
                by setting up big warehouses at locations which are easily accessible from all the locations where we serve will reduce the time required for delivery of items and also the cost involved in logistics will go down given the ease of logistics. The products need to be stocked in the warehouse by understanding the demand for products in the locations in nearby regions. Warehouse management can be implemented so as to reduce strains in logistics due to improperly managed warehouses.

These are some of the pointers which will initially help us in increasing our business in the Caricom region. The disadvantage of geographical connectivity can be mitigated by using the vertical integration methods. Thus, we can simulate the model of Amazon in a real-world situation.

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