Business and strategic impact of digitalization, new distribution channels and technologies on companies supply chain ecosystem. The De’ Longhi Group experience.

Abstract

New digital technologies are having a fundamental impact on one hand on companies’ competitive, productive and innovation capabilities and operating models and on the other hand on consumer’s way of exploring, choosing and purchasing products. The globalization and its consequences - namely deeply interrelated economies and increasing uncertainty and unpredictability due to recurrent pandemic or geopolitical crisis – are adding complexity to this fast changing transformation process. This thesis aim to explore in particular two areas where companies are impacted by digital and new technologies changes: the overall supply chain ecosystem, within the different steps of companies value chain, and the development of new digital distribution channels, in particular the direct to consumer channels. These two aspects are in primis investigated at the level of general systemic evolution and secondary with references to the specific experience of the De 'Longhi Group, an international group operating in the durable consumer goods market.