{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,19]],"date-time":"2026-03-19T17:01:26Z","timestamp":1773939686707,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":57,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,15]],"date-time":"2025-07-15T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1752537600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001809","name":"National Natural Science Foundation of China","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["72202216"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["72202216"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001809","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001809","name":"National Natural Science Foundation of China","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["72404220"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["72404220"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001809","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JTAER"],"abstract":"<jats:p>This paper explores the optimization of the bullwhip effect (BWE) and inventory costs considering price information symmetry in an omnichannel environment, offering novel insights into managing supply chain dynamics. We examine the pick-up lead time in the \u201cbuy online and pick up in store\u201d (BOPS) channel as a critical operational factor, analyzing how the interaction with the ordering lead time affects omnichannel supply chain performance. The research highlights the impacts of the BOPS strategy on demand and inventory information, developing a comparative examination of the BWE and inventory expenses within various supply chain contexts. We discover that the interplay between ordering lead time and pick-up lead time significantly affects both inventory costs and the BWE of omnichannel retailers, with these impacts presenting an inverse relationship. While numerous studies have validated that product returns can restrain the information distortion in supply chains, our findings reveal that this relationship holds true in omnichannel retail only within specific supply chain contexts. This comprehensive approach offers valuable insights for omnichannel supply chain managers seeking to optimize the BOPS strategy and improve overall operational efficiency.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jtaer20030182","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,15]],"date-time":"2025-07-15T09:45:52Z","timestamp":1752572752000},"page":"182","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Analysis of Bullwhip Effect and Inventory Cost in an Omnichannel Supply Chain"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"20","author":[{"given":"Dandan","family":"Gao","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Business, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China"},{"name":"Postdoctoral Research Station in Public Management, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2419-9862","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Chenhui","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Public Policy and Administration, Xi\u2019an Jiaotong University, Xi\u2019an 710049, China"}]},{"given":"Xinye","family":"Sun","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Accounting, Jilin University of Finance and Economics, Changchun 130117, China"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,15]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wan, Y.C., Yan, Z.P., and Wang, S.D. 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