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Purpose – The pressure on logistics companies to embrace green processes has increased significantly in the last few years. Within the broad concept of green supply chain management, a review of the existing literature has highlighted a need to understand how green supply chain practices (GSCP) can contribute to improving company performance from an environmental point of view, as well as economic and operational. This paper aims to investigate the GSCP adopted by third party logistics (3PLs) in Italy in terms of specific practices implemented and level of adoption of each practice, and to explore how this adoption can affect the company performance. Design/methodology/approach – Multi-case study research involving 15 3PLs operating in Italy, with data collected through face-to-face semi-structured interviews with senior representatives from each company. Findings – Even if findings reveal an overall increasing interest towards environmental issues, the current level of adoption of GSCP is still limited amongst the 3PLs investigated as well as their benefits in terms of company performance. Some players have shown a more proactive attitude and started benefiting substantially from the adoption of GSCP, mainly in terms of environmental and economic performance. Research limitations/implications – The research focuses on 3PLs operating in Italy – findings may differ in other countries and sectors. Practical implications – Findings can be used to support company decisions to either modify the GSCP already in place to achieve a set target or identify the most suitable GSCP to implement. Originality/value – This study contributes to a better understanding of the links between GSCP and company performance. It also provides insights into the GSCP currently in place amongst 3PLs operating in Italy, identifying the type of supply chain to which companies belong (or intend to belong in the future) as a relevant factor

Purpose-Given the progressive growth of e-commerce sales and the rising interest in omni-channel (OC) retailing amongst academics and practitioners, the aim of this study is to provide an up-to-date literature review on the logistics involved when moving towards OC retailing. Specifically, we have examined the main issues relating to e-fulfilment and distribution, highlighting how the topic has been developed over time, and identifying the most promising research streams for the near future. Design/methodology/approach-A Systematic Literature Review methodology is adopted. The review is based on 58 papers published from 2002 to 2017 in 34 international journals. The papers were analysed and categorised according to their defining characteristics, methodologies adopted and themes addressed. Findings-This paper provides an overview of the main issues relating to e-fulfilment and distribution experienced by companies shifting towards OC, mapped along three dimensions: distribution network design, inventory and capacity management, delivery planning and execution. Despite the growing interest in OC retailing, many key topics are still under-represented, including the evolution of retail distribution networks, assortment planning over multiple channels, the logistics role played by stores in the delivery process and the interplay between different logistics aspects. Originality/value-The paper offers insights into the main logistics issues in MC and OC retailing, as well as highlights potential fields for further investigation. From a managerial perspective, this paper is useful for retailers adopting an OC approach to guide their future efforts concerning their business logistics model.

Purpose – Given the importance of logistics operations in business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce and growing interest in the related environmental effects, the purpose of this paper is to offer an up-to-date literature review on the topic of B2C e-commerce environmental sustainability, specifically from a logistics perspective.\ud Design/methodology/approach – The analysis focussed on a set of 56 papers published from 2001 to 2014 in 38 peer-reviewed international journals. The papers were analyzed and categorized according to the main features of the paper, the research method(s) adopted and the themes tackled.\ud Findings – There is a growing interest in sustainability issues. In the last 14 years, the focus has progressively shifted from the mere identification of the wide-ranging environmental effects of e-commerce to the need for a quantitative evaluation of their impact, although much remains to be done in this regard. Some industries, such as books and grocery, have largely been addressed, however, promising sectors in the e-commerce field, such as clothing and consumer electronics, have only been considered to a certain degree. Moreover, despite the emerging role of multichannel strategies, the environmental implications of the related logistics activities have not yet been studied in detail. \ud Originality/value – B2C e-commerce has grown in popularity, and its environmental implications are currently of key interest. This paper contributes to the understanding of the existing body of knowledge on this topic, presenting an up-to-date classification of articles and highlighting themes for\ud further research activities. From a managerial perspective, this paper helps supply chain managers develop a clear understanding of both the logistics areas with the most impact on environmental sustainability and the KPIs used to quantify the environmental implications of e-commerce logistics\ud operations comprehensively and effectively

Purpose-Companies are currently moving from multi-channel (MC) strategies to offer their customers an omni-channel (OC) experience. So far, OC research has been mainly tackled from a sales-based view, with numerous operational challenges to be fully investigated yet. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how companies set the logistics variables in their OC management strategy and the business logistics models currently most adopted. Design/methodology/approach-A two-step methodology was adopted. First, a systematic combining approach with scientific literature review and case studies allowed to derive a framework for classifying the key logistics variables and the related options. The framework was then used to conduct a qualitative survey targeting 92 Italian companies operating in food manufacturing, food retailing and non-food retailing. Collected data were analysed by means of cluster analysis. Findings-Implementing an OC management strategy requires to set eleven logistics variables belonging to four strategic areas: delivery service, distribution setting, fulfilment strategy, returns management. A broad empirical investigation showed the choices made by companies when setting the logistics variables to implement an OC management strategy. Lastly, four business logistics models, differing in terms of both business sector and OC maturity, were discussed. Originality/value-The proposed framework extends earlier studies by including additional significant logistics variables. The empirical analysis provides new insights on how to restructure the business logistics model in OC, suggesting channel integration and the coexistence of multiple configurations as main enablers of an OC proposition.