From cross-border e-commerce logistics to supply chain, logistics manager dilemma: how to break out of the Amazon myth?
From cross-border e-commerce logistics to supply chain, logistics manager dilemma: how to break out of the Amazon myth?
Core points extracted:
1. The dilemma of logistics managers behind the myth of "how to get out of Amazon";
2. The great changes in cross-border e-commerce have rendered traditional logistics planning ineffective, and the establishment of a "supply chain planning+logistics execution" driving mechanism needs to be accelerated;
3. Supply chain thinking faces the dual challenges of tariff wars and multi platform operations.
Trump's tariffs strike hard, cross-border sellers' collective blood pressure skyrockets! The e-commerce situation is undergoing drastic changes, and the logistics team, as an important pillar to ensure smooth cross-border links, is facing a new round of stress tests with strong execution ability. In the context of the VUCA era, how to upgrade single point breakthroughs into systematic combat capabilities may be a topic that cross-border e-commerce needs to consider together.
Daily responsibilities of logistics managers:
How platform rules become a bottleneck in the supply chain
The core value of a logistics manager is reflected in the refined operation of the entire chain: completing the transportation tasks delivered by the operations manager, finding the lowest cost logistics service provider to execute the transportation of goods from the supply location to the receiving location, ensuring smooth logistics, mainly playing the role of execution, and relying on the operation plan to formulate transportation plans.
From a deeper perspective, the default supply chain standards of the industry and platforms have become the "operating manual" for logistics managers, as these standards are all default and often overlook the efforts and challenges behind logistics managers.
For example, Amazon's FBA is an efficiency and fulfillment supply chain type, different from the supply chain process of foreign trade. Therefore, the logistics manager needs to follow the platform's standard process and implement the enterprise's operational plan.
In this process, supply chain planning has been cleverly replaced by platform rules, making you unaware of its existence. E-commerce companies that have been operating the Amazon platform for a long time often ask the question of "how to get out of Amazon
Cross border e-commerce in Italy: the hub of international trade between Europe, Asia and Africa, and the "control tower" of global e-commerce logistics
Economic Potential: The third largest economy in the European Union and the eighth largest in the world, serving as a natural springboard for trade between Europe, Asia, and Africa
Italy is a highly developed country with a population of 58.76 million in 2024 and a GDP of approximately $2.33 trillion. It is the world's 8th largest economy with a per capita GDP of $38000, ranking ahead of Japan in the world.
The service industry accounts for 70% of the industrial structure, while the manufacturing industry accounts for less than 20% and is mainly composed of high-end machinery, textile design, and luxury goods, highly dependent on imports. Chinese goods are the largest source of Italian goods, with 39% of electronic equipment and 28% of mechanical equipment coming from China. The soil for cross-border e-commerce is mature.
The Italian economy and e-commerce are mainly active in the north, with the Milan Turin Genoa "iron triangle" where the barns are located accounting for 37% of the country's GDP. The per capita disposable income is twice that of the south, and the average annual growth rate of e-commerce is 33%, which is consistent with the concept of "location follows population/orders" for barns.
Buyer Profile: High order density, more active buyers, deep social media shopping party
The median annual income of Italian households is 32000 US dollars, and in northern Milan and Turin it can reach 38000 US dollars. The population and order density are high, gathering 61% of the country's online shopping population.
Buyers aged 25-44 are the mainstream online shopping group (accounting for 44%), with young people under 24 being the most active, and female buyers being significantly more active than male buyers. Buyers are price sensitive, with 73% of consumers comparing prices from three different sources and an average annual consumption of 1320 euros per person.
Mobile payments account for 41%, social media users account for 82%, and TikTok's active users in Italy increased to 29.3 million in January 2024, with a growth rate of 37%, far exceeding Germany and France.
20% of Italian buyers expect delivery within the next day, 68% hope delivery within 3-5 days, and 95% are unwilling to go out for self pickup. Overseas warehouses are the key to unlocking Italian buyers' wallets.
Mexican e-commerce: the fastest growth rate in Latin America, with a scale surpassing Brazil, leveraging the strategic pivot of the American market
E-commerce energy: the fastest growth rate in Latin America, with a scale surpassing Brazil, serving as a strategic pivot to leverage the American market
As the "growth pole" of cross-border e-commerce in Latin America, Mexico is expected to surpass Brazil in 2026-2027 and become the largest e-commerce market in Latin America.
For sellers, the combination of "economic growth+policy dividends+more young people" in Mexico means "give me Mexico, I can leverage the entire American market".
Mainstream platforms in Mexico include Amazon, Walmart, Mercado Libre, etc. Compared to the dominance of the United States, competition in Mexico has just begun. In recent years, popular categories include 3C, food, and fashion clothing.
Data source Statista, barn mapping
The capital city of Mexico City, where the barn is located, has an e-commerce transaction volume of 21.5 billion US dollars in 2024, with cross-border e-commerce accounting for 41% of the market share and Chinese goods accounting for 58%. The e-commerce penetration rate in the core urban area exceeds 30%, making it the fastest-growing and most promising central city for e-commerce in Latin America.
Logistics Hub: Dual market radiation, crossroads of intercontinental geography, strategic hub of logistics in Latin America
The logistics infrastructure in Mexico is still relatively backward, and many packages cannot be delivered to the last kilometer and can only be picked up at convenience stores or post stations, similar to the logistics in remote rural areas in China.
This also provides a great opportunity to develop overseas warehouses in Mexico, with priority given to two locations for warehouse selection: one is to use the US Mexico border as a replenishment warehouse, and the other is Mexico City, which has a large population and good security, making it a crossroads of intercontinental geography and a strategic hub for Latin American logistics.
Northbound: Through the USMCA land corridor, trucks can reach the Laredo border crossing in the United States in 12 hours; Southbound: Connecting with CPTPP member countries such as Peru and Chile through Colima Port, it is faster than taking the Panama Canal.
Mexico City International Airport is the largest air cargo hub in Latin America, handling 67% of cross-border e-commerce packages nationwide. Its routes cover 97 cities worldwide, and the Pan American Highway 85 directly connects to the airport's cargo area, with "truck cargo plane" fast transit. The Mexican Customs Administration reported in 2024 that Mexico City handles over 380000 cross-border packages from China on a daily basis.
The Granary Mexico Warehouse is located in the core urban area of the capital city, with a large double warehouse configuration, good security environment, and mature operation of local services for many years.
