As 2026 approaches, logistics professionals are focusing on strategies to strengthen resilience in their supply chains. So, how does this impact inventory planning and fulfilment?

While efficiency, flexibility and cost-efficiency have long been the watchwords of warehouse operations, they’re going to be even more important next year for three key reasons.

First, e-commerce keeps growing: Forrester predicts that online sales in Europe’s top five economies will rise at a 7.8% CAGR over the next five years. Second, businesses are looking to provide more value-add services, such as cross-docking or reverse logistics, to maintain competitiveness. And third, supply chain disruptions show no signs of slowing down.

When these factors converge, the risk is that too much inventory gets stuck in one place. This means there is a growing need for overflow space to ensure inventory remains available and that rerouting and reconsolidation can occur quickly.