The logic of logistics

WHAT I thought was logistics is also now referred to as e-commerce. Probably the largest logistics company is Amazon which keeps getting bigger, unlike the Amazon Rainforest which keeps getting smaller.

Logistics is usually the detailed administration and implementation of a complex operation. In a general business sense, logistics is the management of the flow of things between the point of origin and the point of consumption to meet the requests of customers or organisations. Whether you prefer to refer to this as e-commerce or logistics, one thing is certain - large organisations have very little knowledge of the products or services they are selling. This makes it difficult for niche companies and retailers to compete on a level playing field.

Product knowledge from vendors is shrinking by the day. For example, I recently went instore to a large office supplies company and enquired about a leather office chair as I was working from home. I asked if the seat at the back of the chair was leather, the sales assistant referred this question to the manager who referred me to the company’s website for an answer.

I have, for more years than I have been writing this column, used Laithwaites as my preferred drinks supplier once the supermarkets had effectively culled many wine merchants and off-licences (remember them?). From personal experience, Laithwaites customer service is exemplary in my opinion and, generally speaking, its staff know the product. So, the problem with logistics companies is effectively that they create a market that is usually accessible and deliverable with three clicks.

A French Appeal Court recently upheld a local judge’s earlier ruling which prohibited Amazon from performing any delivery of non-essential items amid the COVID pandemic. Under that extraction the company ships only essential products such as food, medicine, hygiene products, and electronics to French customers. This ruling during the pandemic assured the survival of many independent bookstores in Paris as books were not considered to be an essential item (this, of course, is a matter of opinion). Independent booksellers in Paris who had no online presence quickly instigated a click and collect/postal service.

So those of you who work for large organisations who have a preferred supplier list that restricts individual managers from making purchasing decisions, I offer this example. On mobilising a contract that was due to start on a Monday evening we ordered, from a national supplier, what I would refer to as consumable items - mops, buckets, cloths, and chemicals. This particular contract had a day janitor and five part-time evening cleaning operatives. So, on the mid-morning at the start of the contract, the delivery arrived the day janitor and me put the products into the main cleaning store and the three cleaning cupboards. I was dismayed to find that the 10 mop heads of each colour that we had ordered had arrived with no mop handles (on checking the delivery note, I could see that they were on back-order). Mop heads without mop handles are of little or no use so I spoke to the company concerned who informed me it was probable that coloured handles would be available on my next delivery on Monday the following week. Monday, apparently, was the day that they delivered to the town where we were operating. I suggested that, as a stopgap, they deliver six plain, non-coloured handles and they informed me they thought this was a good idea and that they would deliver them the next Monday! I informed them they should put them in a taxi and deliver them to me that afternoon and we would sort out the cost of the logistics later.

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