Empty shopping streets and peaks in parcel delivery: the pandemic has rapidly taken e-commerce to unprecedented heights. Just look at the success of omnichannel sales through marketplaces, both at home and abroad. Our prediction? Companies in retail, fashion and lifestyle that succeed in refining the distribution strategy in the short term and serving customers with flexible stock will come out on top. For them, the opportunities are also there for the taking in the rest of Europe. Of course we are happy to roll up our sleeves to help you with that.
From strategic advice to distribution success
Clothing chains and department stores, but also fashion brands, home furnishing stores and sports stores: to support retailers in all the different sales channels, our sector specialists develop tailor-made distribution strategies. This means that we set up the logistics process together with our customers. And think along about smart delivery solutions. In other words, how do we balance all sales channels and offer consumers and senders flexibility?
Optimal availability across all channels
The most impactful shift of recent times is, of course, that from store to online. With great pressure on the availability of products as a result. Suppose that part of your stock is in Groningen, and the other in Maastricht. How do you get those sneakers to your recipient's home the next day? We see that delivery speed increasingly determines whether consumers choose store X, instead of store Y. No matter how good your distribution strategy is, if people can't buy directly, they click away. Especially in retail, where you have to fight for the attention of your customers.
Perfect fashion partner
A major reason for companies in this sector to work with DHL eCommerce is our limitless reach. We take care of the pick-up in the shopping street and the last mile delivery to the consumer, all from one network. Do you want to use your stores temporarily as a warehouse? Then we effortlessly move the stocks to another branch for click & collect, or we deliver your online orders directly from the store to customers' homes. This makes us unique as a carrier.
The big growth is in Europe
Since the shift to online, fashion brands and retailers are also increasingly finding a connection with marketplaces. Especially the global marketplaces are taking off. With the arrival of these platforms, an interesting sales channel has arisen for clothing brands to offer different collections. So interesting, that they get a permanent place in the marketing strategy at many retailers. The opportunities for online consumer sales are shifting to the rest of the continent. DHL eCommerce has everything it needs to support this internationalisation: a versatile European network, with strong roots in its own country.
Effective delivery thanks to digitalisation
The fact that DHL eCommerce can handle the immense growth in e-commerce is partly due to our digitization. A good example is our delivery mission 'first time right'. We aim for maximum customer satisfaction, at the lowest possible cost. That's where technology comes in. We have improved our delivery notifications by sending consumers a message with the delivery time. And then there's our new My DHL app, which gives recipients complete control over the time and place of delivery. This way we deliver more shipments in one go.
More Servicepoints, fewer emissions
No matter how we use our logistics, sustainability is always a theme along which we shape our services. Especially in fast fashion, this remains an important topic. Our goal? To be completely climate neutral by 2050. We are already well on our way to that, just look at our electric vans. With the expansion of our 3,500 DHL Service Points in the Netherlands, we are also working on this green objective. In addition, our customers decide for themselves which sustainable delivery options they offer in their online check-out. For example, bringing the package to the nearest collection point after a failed delivery attempt, instead of re-entering the residential street the next day.
Want to know more?
We are far from finished with innovation, and look forward to the future of retail, fashion and lifestyle with great pleasure. Thanks to our logistics solutions, we know how to fit a sleeve to every distribution issue. Curious about what DHL eCommerce can do for your company? Feel free to send me a message. I would like to talk to you to explore the possibilities.
