By the end of 2023, we aim to have six offices in India and experiment with a first-mile pick-up to last-mile customisation in 10-11 cities that are crucial to the current e-commerce economy, said Nayan Ratandhayara, Co-Founder & CEO, of Shipyaari, a SaaS-based logistics enabler, providing end – to – end logistics solutions to D2C and E-commerce businesses globally and now catering to over 20,000 sellers across the length and width of the country. Financial Express in conversation with Nayan, Vishal Totla, Co-Founder & COO, and Rahul Karwa – Chief Transformation Officer tells about how the services provided by the company have transformed with the shift in demand, the challenges faced so far, the use of new technology and way ahead.
How Shipyaari came into being
Shipyaari started in 2013 as an aggregator model when e-commerce was emerging. There was a logistics gap in the company and only a few courier companies operating nationally. A single window solution for logistics was required so that the businesses can just take care of the core business and all the logistics part is taken care of. Their automated shipping solutions soon became a hit among small and medium-sized e- retailers.
Since its inception, Shipyaari has been able to grow its network and become one of the most prominent logistics platforms in India. Through its network of over 28,000 pin codes and 25000 registered shippers, it has been able to achieve a 60% annual growth rate.
Challenges
The customers have become very demanding. They need deliveries faster. Challenges now are how to give the last mile deliveries to customers in their given time to the entire e-commerce industry. We are trying to have such a platform where every seller can reach out to every customer in their given time frame. Because of the Saas and new age technology, the potential market has broadened for even hyper-local stores because there is a way of real-time tracking. The three Es i.e. Experience, Experiment, and efficiency have evolved. Every seller needs to experiment to be relevant in the ecosystem and every customer is looking for an experience, as for the logistics chain they need to be efficient to deliver an experience and execute an experiment.
Shipyaari said it came up with eRunnerz, their experimental dream project initiated in the year 2015, to provide for faster delivery at an added cost before services like Amazon
Despite the various challenges that the logistics industry faces, it offers immense opportunities for entrepreneurs. In India, the rapid emergence and growth of the sector have created a huge amount of opportunities for both established and aspiring entrepreneurs. It was not easy for the team of entrepreneurs led by Vishal to run a tech-enabled company. There were also a lot of infrastructure issues that they had to address.
Drone technology
Drone technology will be definitely more efficient as it will bring down the use of manpower to much extent although there would be a mind behind operating those drones. But although drone deliveries theoretically are very lucrative, practically utilising them in metro cities will come with a lot of regulations. But drone deliveries can bring a great change in remote areas for emergency deliveries where road connectivity is not great and are designated green zones where drones can fly easily.
As for using AI technology, the standardization problem has been solved but with new-age tech, analytics can give multiple logistics service providers a microscopic view of how their business is performing and help businesses decide which logistic players to choose depending on their requirements. Technology can increase efficiency. Through its data analytics platform, Shipyaari can improve its services by identifying and analyzing various trends and patterns in its logistics operations. This will allow the company to continuously improve its efficiency and provide its customers with the best possible service.
About govt policies
Govt policies like the National Logistics Policy are bringing much more standardization than was lacking in the logistics and warehousing sector. With the immense investment that the government is planning to bring in infrastructure, it is going to bring massive advancement in connectivity and with 5G rolling out and 100 per cent electrification of Railways, logistics will be more streamlined bringing in new investment in the country.
Introducing tax breaks on equipment purchases can be made available to help companies in the logistics industry invest in their infrastructure. Doing so will allow them to improve their fleet and provide their customers with the most effective services.
Way Ahead
In the future, as Shipyaari continues to grow, it will focus on expanding the company’s network capacity and optimizing its utilization. The entire team is committed to ensuring that the company’s customers receive the best possible service. Over the next five years of his career, he and the team will be able to establish a network that spans the entire country. They currently have four regional offices. By the end of 2026, they aim to have six offices in India and experiment with a first-mile pick-up to last-mile customisation in 10-11 cities that are crucial to the current e-commerce economy. With 62 per cent consumption frontier-III cities in the e-commerce space with popular platforms, we are also looking forward to marking our presence in more tier-II and tier-III cities. Their sole objective is to provide a logistics service that is capable of meeting the needs of their customers.