Scale or Fail: Navigating Trade Volatility for Emerging Brands with Laura Ritchey

In “Scale or Fail: Navigating Trade Volatility for Emerging Brands”, Joe Lynch speaks with President and CEO of the Americas region of GEODIS, Laura Ritchey, about how emerging brands can navigate trade volatility, manage inventory, and build scalable, resilient supply chains.

About Laura Ritchey

Laura Ritchey joined GEODIS in July 2025 as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Americas region. Laura is responsible for overseeing the region’s freight forwarding, contract logistics and transportation business units along with engineering and technology, IT, ProVenture (U.S.-based subsidiary of GEODIS focusing on industrial real estate) and Material Handling Resources (one of the country’s leading material handling distributors owned by GEODIS). In total, Laura oversees GEODIS Americas’ expansive operations including nearly 20,000 employees and more than 230 sites across eight countries. Laura brings over 30 years of experience to GEODIS, with 15 focused on supply chain management in both retail and third-party logistics. Laura began her career in finance before transitioning to supply chain operations, including sourcing, distribution and strategic transformation. Prior to her current role, Laura was most recently CEO at Radial, Inc., a leader in e-commerce fulfillment solutions, where she drove revenue growth and profitability through operational excellence. At Radial, she led the North American P&L for a $1.4B e-commerce logistics division, responsible for relationships with over 170 clients across four service lines. Before joining Radial, she held leadership positions at L Brands, FullBeauty Brands and Centric Brands. Laura is on the Dean’s Advisory Council at Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University and is an active board member of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta’s Nashville Branch. Additionally, she is actively involved with C200 whose mission is to inspire, educate, support and advance current and future women leaders. Laura earned her J.D., MBA and bachelor’s degree from The Ohio State University. Additionally, Laura is accredited as a certified public accountant and admitted to the bar in Ohio.

About GEODIS

GEODIS is a leading global logistics provider acknowledged for its expertise across all aspects of the supply chain. As a growth partner to its clients, GEODIS specializes in four lines of business: Global Freight Forwarding, Global Contract Logistics, Distribution & Express Transport, and European Road Network. The Group operates a global network spanning nearly 170 countries and 48,000 employees. In 2025, GEODIS generated €10.6 billion in revenue. GEODIS is a company owned by SNCF group.

Key Takeaways: Scale or Fail: Navigating Trade Volatility for Emerging Brands

• Beware the "10K Order Trap" During Rapid Growth: Scaling operations from 1,000 to 10,000 monthly orders often breaks a business before demand stalls. Emerging brands must build strong foundational supply chain building blocks early—such as maintaining clean master data (accurate dimensions and weights) and choosing a 3PL capable of global growth—to avoid costly operational failures when reaching inflection points.
• Adopt a Hybrid Inventory Strategy to Balance JIT and JIC: Shifting strictly between "Just in Time" (JIT) and "Just in Case" (JIC) risks either stockouts or trapped working capital. A balanced, hybrid approach—keeping adequate stock of fast-moving core basics while tightly controlling slow-moving seasonal items—helps protect cash flow without sacrificing availability.
• Re-evaluate the "Amazon Effect" and Recommerce to Protect Margins: High-speed, free shipping creates an illusion of necessity that drives up last-mile costs. Brands should focus on order delivery certainty over pure speed while implementing circular economy strategies (recommerce) to rehabilitate and resell returned apparel, which often recovers up to 95% of inventory value.
• Mitigate Sourcing Risks Beyond Single-Factory Bets: Diversifying supply chains requires going all the way back to raw material inputs rather than simply relocating assembly plants. Navigating evolving global tariffs requires nearshoring flexibility, dual-sourcing critical SKUs, and re-orchestrating supply chain flows across regional hubs.
• Understand True Landed Costs to Avoid Margin Shock: Delegating freight forwarding and customs clearance entirely to overseas manufacturers often leads to hidden markups and supply chain delays. Leveraging an end-to-end global provider with licensed customs brokerage capabilities ensures clear visibility into total landed costs and regulatory compliance.
• Leverage Global Scale with Curated, End-to-End Execution: Supported by a global network spanning nearly 170 countries, over 48,000 employees, and €10.6 billion (USD $12.35 billion) in revenue (2025), GEODIS provides emerging and established brands with an agile, end-to-end "launchpad for global growth" across contract logistics, freight forwarding, and transportation.
• Avoid the "Set It and Forget It" Supply Chain Mindset: Ongoing volatility, regulatory shifts, and geopolitical friction require continuous evaluation of supply chain networks. Taking a cautious, practical approach to emerging technologies like AI (for labor forecasting and route planning) ensures operational stability while safeguarding proprietary data.

Learn More About Scale or Fail: Navigating Trade Volatility for Emerging Brands

Laura Ritchey | Linkedin

GEODIS | Linkedin

GEODIS

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