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"One-stop
shopping" in the Netherlands:
How to arrange your European logistics simply
and quickly and save money |
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The way companies have to
organise their physical distribution in Europe is to a large extent
determined by sales volume, the nature of the products, the geographical
location of the customers and the country of origin of the product.
The “one-stop shopping”model helps international companies
to improve their sales by giving a head start through a tailor-made
package of services.
In May 2001, the Economist published that the Netherlands
is the “Best place to do business in the world” for the
upcoming 5 years. The Dutch logistics industry is one of the key factors
to this success. Between the late eighties and the early nineties,
multinational companies started to centralize their |
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European stocks into one EDC (European
Distribution Center) to supply their European customers. This trend
was mainly triggered by the vanishing internal EU-borders on one hand
and the necessity to reduce overall costs and increase overall control
and visibility of good flows on the other. The advantages of centralization
were numerous: less storage space occupied, lower overall stocks,
more efficient transportation possibilities and improvement of customer
service. The core businesses of these EDCs at those days were storage
and distribution. Many manufacturers chose to outsource their EDC
to a Dutch logistics service provider. As from this period, the Netherlands
gained a strong reputation as an EDC country within Europe. The Dutch
market share of EDCs is over 50% today! Other activities like call
centers, repair centers and in some cases the European Head Quarter
followed. This gave the Netherlands a strong economic position within
Europe and the world and offers great opportunities for companies
that want to increase their focus on the European market.
The “one-stop shopping” model implicates that one single
logistics service provider manages the international company’s
a large part of the entire logistical process. This is not just about
standard operations such as intercontinental transport, storage and
distribution. The same logistics service provider also arranges added
value operations (including quality control, assembly and reverse
logistics), rental of office space and tax, customs and financial
transactions.
”One-stop shopping” offers advantages,
particularly for small and medium-sized companies wishing to enter
the European market (in some cases for the first time). To start business
in Europe, it is not necessary for the company to be based in Europe,
because the Dutch logistics service provider can receive instructions
from its client at any time from any location in the world and can
act as the European entity for the manufacturer. Orders can be communicated
via internet log-in procedures or EDI-connections, picked & packed
and made ready for despatch to European addresses the same day. This
allows the goods to be delivered more quickly and efficiently to anywhere
in Europe as compared to shipping from Hong Kong. Next to that, the
logistics service provider can manage the customs processes and VAT-deferment
in order to save money by improving the cash-flows of the customer.
The manufacturer can focus on the core businesses like R&D and
marketing and be best in these fields.
Activities
frequently outsourced to a logistics service provider in the “one-stop-shopping”model
are:
* Ocean freight forwarding
* (Bonded) Warehousing
* Transportation and road-forwarding
* Assembly
* Testing
* Customs procedures
* VAT-deferment
* Stock management
* Customer contact
* Cash or Credit management
The most mentioned advantages
of the logistics “one-stop shopping”model:
* The manufacturer can concentrate on sales and R&D;
* lower capital investment in own facilities means less risk;
* no investment in local staff, real estate or general facilities;
* fixed costs become variable;
* short, effective lines of communication;
* immediate availability of logistical and country-specific expertise;
* the concept can be applied to almost all sectors.
* Immediate availability of all necessary ICT-tools
The Netherlands is a good example of a country with a large number
of professional, worldwide logistics service providers, capable of
putting the “one-stop shopping”concept into practice.
Holland International Distribution Council (HIDC) acts as an intermediary
in the selection of the right service provider. HIDC is a non-profit
organisation which draws on its years of experience to advise companies
on the establishment or reorganisation of their European logistics
chain. It can call on over 600 logistics-related companies who are
members of this organisation.
For more information: www.hidc.nl
Contact: Mr Tim van Rees at t.vanrees@hidc.nl |
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