[Supply Chain Terminology] Last Mile Delivery

Last-mile delivery refers to the door-to-door service, in which customers send the purchased goods to the distribution point after shopping through e-commerce channels, and then deliver the goods from the sorting center to customers through a certain mode of transportation.

The "last mile" of distribution is actually not a kilometer, it refers to the distance from the logistics sorting center to the customer and the process of delivering the goods to the customer by means of transportation. Because it's a short trip, it's called one kilometer delivery. This short-distance delivery is the end of the whole logistics link and the only direct face-to-face contact with customers, which is of great significance.

Current situation of last mile distribution

At present, the rapid development of online shopping and the lag of logistics distribution have been seriously mismatched, and the latter has become the biggest bottleneck in the development of e-commerce. Every New Year's Day, the number of complaints in JD.COM Mall, the home grid mall, always rises in a straight line, and most of them point in the same direction-the delivery is too slow. Like JD.COM, Dangdang and Zhuoyue often encounter such problems. When a large number of goods are distributed centrally, logistics will inevitably be blocked.

Inter-city distribution is large in batch and low in frequency, which is convenient for cost control. However, due to the continuous improvement of customers' requirements for timeliness, regional distribution can only be delivered in small batches and with high frequency, which makes the cost of regional distribution high.

In addition, online shopping customers are more sensitive to logistics costs and it is difficult to pass on the costs to the downstream. Today, e-commerce platforms such as Taobao and Dangdang have become the biggest customers of express delivery companies. Because of the cost pressure, the express delivery industry chooses to increase the express delivery fee, which will inevitably affect the rapid development of e-commerce.

Problems existing in the last mile distribution

1. It is difficult to transport vehicles to cities and communities.

Nowadays, in most economic center cities of China, there are strict restrictions on trucks entering the city, both in terms of time and roads. Signs like "No Trucks" will be seen at many intersections entering the city. Trucks must have a pass to enter the city, and they can only enter the city within a specified time period, which not only causes traffic jams when trucks get together at night, but also greatly reduces the delivery efficiency of express vehicles.

On the other hand, in the delivery process of express delivery, many communities do not allow express delivery personnel to enter the community for safety reasons. The courier can only call customers one by one at the door of the community, or leave the parcel at the property management office. However, the loss of goods caused by the latter led to many disputes between the property management and the courier company, which led to the property management refusing to accept the courier and parcel. In this way, the delivery efficiency of express delivery at the last stop is greatly reduced, and it is impossible to deliver the parcel to the customer in time and safely.

2. There is a serious time conflict between express delivery and customers.

If the express delivery industry wants to provide high-quality service, the most basic thing is to meet the "door-to-door" service. However, in the actual delivery process, 80% ~ 90% of the courier's working hours overlap with the customer's working hours, which undoubtedly aggravates the time conflict between the courier and the customer.

For most office workers, no one receives express delivery at home during the day, and the courier is not willing to wait until after work, and the efficiency of express delivery is also significantly reduced. In this way, the time from dispatch to collection of express mail is obviously prolonged.

3. The last mile of rural express delivery resources are scarce.

In recent years, China's express delivery industry has developed rapidly, but express delivery is mainly concentrated in urban areas. In first-and second-tier cities, the logistics distribution network is basically saturated, and the urban express service radiates as far as the surrounding county-level cities, while most towns and villages are not within the scope of express service, and the express delivery industry in towns and villages is still in a very backward state. The rural market is undoubtedly a huge cake for the express delivery industry, but how to enjoy this delicious cake is a problem that needs to be solved now.

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