DHL eCommerce invests EUR70 million to boost India’s e-commerce sector

Nov 16, 2016: DHL eCommerce, a division of Deutsche Post DHL Group, is investing EUR70 million to strengthen its operations to meet the fast-growing demand for quality e-commerce logistics services in India.

Through its subsidiary Blue Dart Express, this investment will go into the expansion of its air hubs in Delhi and Mumbai which are part of its network of 13 air hubs in India. The latest investment supports the growth of B2C e-commerce in India, and is part of the company’s broader plan to aggressively expand across Asia Pacific.

Catering to the increasing shipment volumes by B2C e-commerce consumers in India, the air hubs, measuring 5,761 square metre and 4,274 square metre in Delhi and Mumbai respectively, will be equipped with automation to handle a daily volume of over 500 tonnes. The automation in both air hubs enables Blue Dart to process higher volumes of inbound and outbound shipments in a shorter span of time for distribution to consumers across India by air. With the Mumbai air hub located at an airside facility, it will further accelerate the speed of domestic cross-border air shipments, streamlining customs processes and boosting on-time performance.

“The e-commerce industry is an extremely exciting one that offers tremendous opportunities for businesses and consumers alike. The global B2C cross border e-commerce market will multiply in size to USD1 trillion in 2020,” said Juergen Gerdes, CEO, Post – eCommerce – Parcel, Deutsche Post DHL Group.

“The growth is driven by increasing consumption from expanding middle classes, greater mobile and internet penetration and improving logistics and infrastructure as consumers increasingly shop online and expect shorter delivery times. With our added focus on innovation such as the StreetScooter and In-Car Delivery, we are gearing up to ensure we stay ahead of the game and be able to anticipate and meet the needs of the overall industry, e-tailers and end customers.”

“The US and Asia Pacific are the two largest B2C e-commerce markets in the world, and the opening of these new facilities will be another milestone in the expansion of DHL eCommerce logistics network. India is a really important market for us and is one of the fastest-growing, with B2C e-commerce expected to grow from EUR 9.6 billion in 2016 to between EUR 30-40 billion in 2020,” said Charles Brewer, CEO, DHL eCommerce.

“With retail e-commerce in India expected to grow at a CAGR of 30 to 35 percent by 2020, the air hubs will bolster our operations to better serve the growing e-commerce market in the country. We see tremendous opportunities across Asia Pacific as well, where many emerging economies are located, and will expand our footprint accordingly. It’s exciting times ahead as we continue to focus our efforts on delivering fulfillment, cross-border shipping, and last-mile delivery solutions to meet the needs of the e-commerce industry,” says Malcolm Monteiro, CEO, Asia Pacific, DHL eCommerce.

“The expanded facilities in Delhi and Mumbai, coupled with our flexible and easy-to- use e-fulfillment solutions, will enable e-commerce sellers to distribute their products to over 34,000 domestic locations effectively. As the national leader in door-to- door delivery in India, our deliveries are fully managed end-to- end, including routing, sorting and shipping goods efficiently from the warehouse to customers’ doorstep, to provide customers with consistent service excellence. Our EUR70 million investment will ensure that we continue to lay a strong foundation to offer even greater support to our e-commerce customers,” said Anil Khanna, managing director, Blue Dart Express.

DHL eCommerce has been making sustained investments and innovative solutions in India over the years, through Blue Dart Express.

In 2015, the company launched its Parcel Locker at Gurgaon’s Unitech, Cyber Park, to enable more choice and convenience for consumers to collect their shipments.

Other innovations include Smart Trucks, which uses technology to help vehicles overcome urban logistics challenges, and Mobile Wallets to offer secure and streamlined cash-on- delivery solutions to enable convenient transactions for e-commerce consumers.

The latest announcement of the EUR70 million investment in India follows some recent investments by DHL to provide logistics solutions for the e-commerce industry. The company recently announced an investment of USD137 million to increase its e-commerce footprint in the United States. After the first order fulfillment center opened in Columbus, Ohio, last year and followed by a facility in Los Angeles, DHL eCommerce will establish further regional centers of this kind in New Jersey and other locations in 2017.

In June 2016, DHL eCommerce announced that it will expand its overall presence in China by 50 percent, with the expansion of the distribution centers in Shenzhen, Shanghai and Hong Kong. Along with the huge growth of e-commerce in China, the distribution centers will enable maximum volumes of over 130 million shipments a year combined.

Earlier in January 2016, DHL eCommerce launched domestic delivery operations in Thailand and announced plans to double its fleet and number of depots by 2017. Thailand, with its tremendous growth potential, fast e-commerce adoption and high smartphone penetration rates, was identified as the first Southeast Asian country to launch the DHL eCommerce domestic delivery service, in line with the Group’s Strategy 2020.