We say it all the time. You need an efficient inventory management system to run an efficient retail business. And if your operation is big enough to need a warehouse to store what you sell, all the more reason to embrace today’s inventory management technology tools to ensure that efficiency.

But, as we recently pointed out, according to the Wasp Barcode Technologies 2017 State of Small Business Report, small businesses have been slow to change inventory methods. In fact, only 18% of the 1,100 small businesses that participated in the report use an inventory control system.

Why so slow to accept new technology when technology is changing so fast?

If you haven’t embraced a new inventory management system, you should, at the very least, be aware of the latest advancements, not only in inventory management but also in the innovative tools now available to accomplish the hands-on stuff, like wearable technology for warehouse workers. 

Yes, the science-fiction concept of wearable technology, or “wearables,” for short, is here.  Smart glasses, smart watches, voice-directed headsets, “finger-trigger” gloves equipped with barcode scanners, are sophisticated, cutting-edge solutions that have amazing potential for improving warehouse operations.

Trever Ehrlich, a creative solutions manager for Kenco, a logistics provider, says that wearables “can provide loads of information, and guide users to expedite tasks – receiving, stocking, sorting, shipping, navigating to items, even showing the user how to lift safely -- and they can do all of this without workers having to take their eyes off their work.”

Just like other inventory management tools, wearables may take time to catch on.

“Adoption is slow right now, but it will ramp up in the next few years,” says Erlich. “It takes time to bring change. But we are starting to see that change happen.”