In recent years, the rise of e-commerce sales has brought increased demand for 3PLs. However, the soaring growth in e-commerce sales is set to stabilize as some sectors are soon to hit maturity. This shift in the landscape will see a surge in demand for more end-to-end visibility from 3PLs.
“The need for 3PLs to offer retail shippers end-to-end visibility of their supply chains on an item-by-item level is expected to increase, as retailers respond to demand for a greater diversity of products delivered to homes or stores on a more frequent and fragmented basis.
At the same time, however, retail experts warned delegates at last week’s eft 3PL summit in Amsterdam that soaring growth in e-commerce sales was likely to decline as some sectors hit maturity. This would require more integration of the supply chains that fulfill e-commerce and conventional retail channels.”
Extracted from article, “What Omni-Channel Retail Trading Needs Is A ‘Logistics Cloud’” by Gavin Van Marle
The price of deliveries to consumers is likely to become a major battleground. To provide greater value to shippers, 3PLs need to provide more value added services that will in turn translate to savings for their shippers. This is where end-to-end-visibility comes in.
With better control over the supply chain and last mile delivery, the shipper will be able to control their inventory better and fulfill orders faster. Customer satisfaction from the visibility will also encourage repeated buys.
With the entire supply chain now made visible, retailers and 3PLs will be able to perfect their coordination to achieve more value for money last mile delivery services.
