Logistics for MSMEs: Flipkart’s supply chain arm Ekart on Monday launched its business-to-business (B2B) India-wide delivery and first-mile pick-up services for businesses through a fleet of over 7,000 GPS-enabled trucks. The service will be offered through air and surface modes and will cater to MSMEs including manufacturers and retailers and brands across industries.
Ekart said the service will offer multiple ‘goods movement alternatives’ to businesses through 21 airports across major Indian cities and a network of trucks for Full Truckload (FTL) and Part Truckload (PTL) services. A shipment wherein the truck is fully occupied by goods and responsible to transport goods from one point to another is called FTL while a partially loaded truck is called PTL.
The surface transportation will be offered to businesses from 80 hubs across the country, connecting major logistics corridors and supported by the fleet of closed-body container trucks with digilock covering an average of 800 kilometres per truck per day nationwide, the company said.
Mani Bhushan, Chief Business Officer at Ekart, said the B2B transportation solution addresses issues such as numerous intermediaries, delivery delays, consignment damage, and shipment visibility. “Our Air Express option will ensure swift and reliable movement of critical shipments nationwide. With our deep understanding of the value chain, we not only simplify B2B transportation for businesses but also empower them to focus on their core strengths, contributing to the larger economy,” he said.
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Ekart offers brands, platforms, and businesses end-to-end supply chain and inventory management, including distribution, and aggregation of products. The company has a network of fulfilment and sortation centres and thousands of delivery hubs. According to the company, it delivers over 120 million packages every month across all serviceable pin codes.
India’s e-commerce logistics market, which recorded over 4 billion parcels in FY23, is expected to exceed 10 billion parcels by FY28 on the back of growth in the e-commerce sector, according to a report by consultancy firm RedSeer Strategy Consultants in April this year. D2C (direct-to-customer) channel has emerged as a strong growth segment in e-commerce and D2C brands across channels are expected to grow overall GMV at 35 per cent in the next few years.