Method, a system, and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium for fulfillment center and retail store fulfillment of retail orders

A system, comprising:

• a fulfillment center;
• a retail store located remote from the fulfillment center;
• a central order management system comprising a first processor and a first memory device coupled to the first processor, the first memory device comprising instructions executable by the first processor that, when executed, cause the first processor of the central order management system to:
• receive, from a customer device, data related to an order of a plurality of retail items for pick-up or delivery, wherein the data from the customer device is packaged in a first data structure;
• parse the data packaged in the first data structure into a second data structure by creating one or more order records comprising a first set of customer-related data, store-related data associated with the retail store, and at least one of the plurality of retail items, wherein the second data structure is suitable for storage in an order database and the first data structure is not suitable for storage in the order database;
• store the parsed data in the order database;
• and
• select, for each retail item in the order, a preferred source location from which to source a retail item of the plurality of retail items, the preferred source location being selected from the group consisting of:
• the fulfillment center and the retail store, wherein the instructions that further cause the first processor to select the preferred source location for each retail item in the order comprise instructions that, when executed, cause the first processor to:
• select the preferred source location to be the fulfillment center in response to determining that the retail item is available at the fulfillment center;
• select the preferred source location to be the retail store in response to determining that it is undesirable or unsafe to transport the retail item between different source locations;
• and
• select the preferred source location to be the retail store in response to determining that the retail item is not available at the fulfillment center;
• one or more order processing servers comprising a second processor and a second memory device coupled to the second processor, the second memory device comprising instructions executable by the second processor that, when executed, cause the second processor of the one or more order processing servers to generate one or more tasks associated with:
• preparing, at the fulfillment center, a first portion of the order including retail items for which the fulfillment center is selected as the preferred source location;
• preparing, at the retail store, a second portion of the order including retail items for which the retail store is selected as the preferred source location;
• loading the first portion of the order onto a transportation vehicle for transportation to the retail store;
• and
• assembling the order comprising the first portion and the second portion at the retail store, wherein for at least one retail item in the order, the at least one retail item in the order is available at both the fulfillment center and the retail store;
• and
• one or more pieces of automation equipment in the fulfillment center, wherein the executable instructions, when executed, further cause the second processor of the one or more order processing servers to generate the one or more tasks associated with preparing the first portion of the order by outputting one or more control signals for operating the automation equipment.

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored therein, which when executed by a computer cause the computer to perform functions, including functions to:

• receive, from a customer device data related to an order of a plurality of retail items for pick-up or delivery, wherein the data from the customer device is packaged in a first data structure;
• parse the data packaged in the first data structure into a second data structure by creating one or more order records comprising customer-related data, store-related data associated with a retail store, and at least one of the plurality of retail items, wherein the second data structure is suitable for storage in an order database and the first data structure is not suitable for storage in the order database;
• store the parsed data in the order database;
• select for each retail item in the order a preferred source location from which to source a retail item of the plurality of retail items, the preferred source location being selected from the group consisting of:
• a fulfillment center and the retail store, wherein the retail store is located remote from the fulfillment center, and wherein selecting the preferred source location for each retail item in the order comprises:
• determining whether the retail item is undesirable or unsafe to transport between different source locations based, at least in part, on at least one of item size, item weight, or item temperature;
• selecting the preferred source location to be the fulfillment center in response to determining that the retail item is available at the fulfillment center;
• selecting the preferred source location to be the retail store in response to determining that it is undesirable or unsafe to transport the retail item between the different source locations;
• and
• selecting the preferred source location to be the retail store in response to determining that the retail item is not available at the fulfillment center;
• and
• generate one or more tasks associated with:
• preparing, at the fulfillment center, a first portion of the order comprising retail items for which the fulfillment center is selected as the preferred source location, wherein the one or more tasks associated with preparing the first portion comprise outputting one or more control signals to automation equipment in the fulfillment center;
• preparing, at the retail store, a second portion of the order including retail items for which the retail store is selected as the preferred source location;
• loading the first portion of the order onto a transportation vehicle for transportation to the retail store;
• and
• assembling the order comprising the first portion and the second portion at the retail store, wherein for at least one retail item in the order, the at least one retail item in the order is available at both the fulfillment center and the retail store.