LOGISTIC SERVICES
for catering demands from fashion industry
Safexpress plans high for catering demands from fashion industry
Vineet Kanaujia
According to Vineet Kanaujia, Vice President - Marketing, Safexpress, the fashion logistics industry is ever transcending. Many international brands have entered the Indian fashion industry. These brands with strong financial backing have led to increased competition in fashion market. This has in turn led to increased pressure on cost reduction, for which optimising supply chain and logistics costs is vital.
In Kanaujia’s opinion, the product demand is very uncertain in the fashion logistics industry and flexible supply chain systems are needed to respond to the ever-changing markets. The product demand depends on seasonal variations, high inflationary market and availability of cheaper substitutes. Also, E-commerce in India is growing at a very fast pace. The logistics challenges of such online business models are numerous. To counter them, supply chains have to be efficient, flexible and accurate.
“The Indian fashion industry is extremely volatile with products having short life-
cycles. The consumer demands are everchanging and in order to make profits, fashion apparel retailers need to adopt ‘speed-tomarket’ approach to harness trends not embraced by their competitors. Such speed can only be provided by logistics providers having market expertise and huge national presence,” Kanaujia pointed out.
According to him, new policy initiatives have been taken by Indian government which will have significant impact on the textile and apparel industry. On the retail front the decision to allow 100 per cent FDI in single brand retail and 51 per cent in multi brand retail will have a strong impact on foreign
investment in fashion retail and hence on its supply chain and logistics requirements.
domestic market scenario
Kanaujia highlighted that domestic business for apparel brands have on average grown by 9 per cent in value during the first half of 2013. The reasons for this growth are : increase in disposable income, increased product demand in the women’s clothing segment, fashion is increasingly becoming a form of self-expression, rapid urbanisation/ Westernisation of the Indian youth and the continued rise of organised retail across the country.
“Speed, flexibility and efficiency are the key factors that the apparel and lifestyle industry expects from logistics providers. Safexpress works with retailers & manufacturers to develop supply chain systems that are always ready to respond to ever-changing market requirements. The company makes sure that the products don’t just remain idle in the warehouses, but ensures their delivery to the market faster so that retailers can take advantage of the latest trends,” observed Kanaujia.
He underlined that Safexpress provides innovative logistics services to the apparel and lifestyle industry that help speed up inventories to market. The firm provides supply chain services that efficiently manage material flow, from stock to shelf, and enables manufacturers and retailers, to focus on their core activities. Safexpress has state-of-the-art infrastructure and a huge network across India. The company offers services that include everything from supply chain strategy and network designing to in-store logistics.
stocK2shelF
Stock2Shelf enables multi-brand retail stores and shopping malls to function seamlessly throughout the year. This service ensures ‘time-definite’ delivery with the help of professionally trained crew that manages stocks along with the necessary documentation required to enter the malls. Stock2Shelf offers comprehensive mall supply chain services, inclusive of movement of retail & lifestyle goods, inspection, estimation, professional packaging, security clearance, storage, destination delivery, unpacking, reassembling of the goods and reverse logistics.
other supply chain services that safexpress provides include:
Piece, inner box and box picking Bundling, kitting & tagging services Efficient reverse logistics services Monitoring & quality control procedures Product inspection, estimation & reassembling Bar coding, labeling & scanning services In-Store Delivery & Just-In-Time services
Future plans for handling fashion logistics
Safexpress is developing world-class warehousing facilities at key industrial hubs across India. Out of the planned 32 Logistics Parks, the company has already launched 18 Logistics Parks in Mumbai, Jamshedpur, Bengaluru, Puducherry, Pune, Rudrapur, Chennai, Salem, Nagpur, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Gurgaon, Bilaspur, Bhubaneshwar, Agra, Indore, Haridwar and Ambala. These warehouses have a combined area of over 8 million square feet across the country. “We intend to create 2 million sq. ft. of additional warehousing space across the country in the next couple of years. These Logistics Parks will support our fashion logistics endeavors in a big way,” Kanaujia asserted.
some challenges
Infrastructural problems like bad road conditions, poor connectivity, and inadequate air/sea port capacities are major deterrents Lack of skilled labor and manpower to handle supply chain operations
We intend to create 2 million square feet of additional warehousing space across the country in the next couple of years. These Logistics Parks will support our fashion logistics endeavors in a big way
Delayed documentation processes and other regulatory hurdles Vast Indian geography – numerous remote locations to be covered
expected solutions
“The solutions lie to a large extent in the hands of our Government, which could do its bit in terms of developing a world class infrastructure to enhance pan-India connectivity. Also, the regulatory hurdles need to be minimised by the Government, if in case swift economic growth has to be brought about to our country. Regarding skill development, both the sector as well as the Government can join hands and work together for developing a large number of programmes, which can help create skilled manpower for the industry,” said Kanaujia.
He also maintained that the most important expectation is the providing of industry status to the Supply Chain and Logistics Sector in India. Formation of a single Regulatory Body to look into the concerns of logistics sector will immensely benefit the economy and streamline procedures and processes.
“Also, we expect an increase in the budget on infrastructure development. The government should prioritise the creation of special tax provisions to improve the level of private sector investment in infrastructure,” he added.
According to him, a Uniform Toll Policy is another vital need of today. Multiple toll points on highways reduce efficiency and adversely affect the turnaround time of trucks. Moreover, the lack of uniformity in toll charges creates irregularities in the cost structure. A centralised toll mechanism is needed to ensure uniformity in toll charges paid by trucker drivers at various check points. This would lead to reduction in stoppage time and will create greater efficiency.
“Finally, we expect higher level of automation to be brought in while handling documentation, alongside implementation of GST. Documentation needs to be computerised and minimised, so that less number of forms are needed to be filled at checkposts. This would greatly enhance the efficiency of logistics operations,” Kanaujia concluded.