We are building the last mile network of the future
As one of the fastest growing first mile and last mile delivery platforms in India spread across 20+ states, CABT Logistics offers a comprehensive portfolio of services like warehouse, first mile, mid mile and last mile services. The technology-driven logistics service provider enables businesses to make their supply chain more efficient through integrated services. In an inter-view with Fibre2Fashion, CABT (Creativity at Best Technologies Pvt Ltd) Founder Shailesh Kumar discusses logistics in the Indian e-commerce and q-commerce industry.
When did you start CABT? What was the motivation behind starting it?
E-commerce and q-commerce have been gaining traction exponentially amplifying the need to offer seamless delivery experiences. This is how CABT Logistics was envisioned. CABT was founded in 2018 with the vision of creating excellence in the field of logistics services to endow businesses with the right knowledge and support to scale their operations. Our mission is to fa-cilitate fleet management and logistics for the new-age e-commerce tech start-ups. CABT has now grown into a comprehensive solutions partner. It is also now one of the ‘fastest growing first mile and last mile’ delivery platforms in India spread across 20+ states.
How has the e-commerce industry evolved in the last two years? At what rate is it growing?
The pandemic brought about one of the most significant growth periods in e-commerce. Con-sumers are now accustomed to the convenience and efficiency of e-commerce and q-commerce. Having the luxury of getting products delivered to their doorsteps has given them the impetus to shop online and this has in turn catapulted e-commerce to massive growth.
With digitisation and global connectivity, no product is out of reach. From essentials to non-essentials, luxury to groceries, e-commerce is the new norm. Online sales in India this year are expected to reach $11.8 billion during the festive season, a 28 per cent increase from last year.
According to Redseer Strategy Consultants, sales will reach $5.9 billion in the first festive week, up 28 per cent from $4.8 billion last year.
What is the penetration of e-commerce in tier 2 and tier 3 towns in India?
The past few years have seen monumental growth of e-commerce in tier 2 and tier 3 cities. In a bid to acquire a wider segment of the market and with increased consumer awareness, the retail behemoths penetrated the tier 2 and tier 3 cities as well, especially post-COVID. The younger brands too followed suit. Besides this, initiatives by the government and accelerated infrastruc-ture development have further added to the growth. The Indian e-commerce market is expected to reach $200 billion in the near future.
Which major logistics services does CABT offer?
We provide a safe, affordable, and stress-free logistic platform for our clients.
With a delivery partner network of more than 20,000 trusted delivery personnel and 12,000+ active pin codes, CABT helps businesses reduce redundancies, optimise supply chains and boost profitability in a competitive business environment. From picking, and packing, to transportation, they offer tech-based solutions tailor-made to your requirements.
Diversifying into warehousing, first mile, mid mile and last mile services, CABT has gained a strong foothold in 1,640+ cities across India, becoming an intracity logistics powerhouse since its inception in 2018. Aided by its industry-agnostic nature, we are galvanising the logistics landscape.
The end-to-end visibility we offer to all stakeholders involved ensures the application of a seamless supply chain and a more cost-effective and efficient solution for our clients.
Which are your major markets for hyperlocal, e-commerce, warehousing and quick commerce?
We have a pan-India presence. Our clients like Meesho, Purplle etc have a strong foothold in all the major metropolitans. Besides this, we are aligned with them for a stronger presence in tier 2 and tier 3 cities as well for both warehousing and deliveries.
What percentage of your clients are from the fashion/textile industry?
We work across all industries including food, pharma, FMCG, e-commerce, apparel, and auto-mobiles. The apparel segment contributes 30 per cent.
At what rate is the D2C segment growing in India?
The D2C segment is growing by leaps and bounds. As per reports and market predictions, the segment is steadily growing at a 60-70 per cent rate across all fields—be it fashion, women’s health and wellness, healthcare etc.
What are the challenges that are hampering the growth of this segment?
Automation and technological developments are currently the biggest challenges. The market is growing at a very accelerated pace and there’s a need to streamline the logistics arm with not just basic automation but with processes that help in bringing down the delivery timelines sig-nificantly. This also includes apt software for route optimisation etc.
What innovations in logistics do you plan to bring in the future?
One of the major bottlenecks of logistics today is route optimisation. Currently, once the customer feeds in their address, there is no software or algorithm in place to help figure out the shortest route for delivery. This does lead to energy wastage and delays deliveries as well. We are investing heavily in solving this issue and figuring out a way to optimise the route for delivery.
We are actively working towards expansion. We are now gearing up to invest ₹4,80,00,000 to build about 60 micro-fulfilment centres across India. This investment in micro-warehouses comes in the wake of the e-commerce and q-commerce boom, especially in a post-crisis world. The idea is to bring automation to warehousing and help companies with route optimisation.
The second crucial and major chunk of our investment is in the EV segment. As a company and also through joint ventures with OEM, we are bringing EVs on board for our logistics operations and our aim is that by 2025, 80 per cent of our fleet will comprise EVs. We have signed an MoU with Mahindra and Mahindra for the purchase of 500 three-wheeler EVs. We are also in conversation with other OEMs for a larger quantity of orders.
Besides this, we currently have 2,000 EVs in different models as part of our fleet. Out of these 50 EVs are three-wheelers which cost about ₹3-3.5 lakh per EV. CABT Elektra, a separate entity under CABT, will be responsible for these tie-ups, investments and expansion. We will con-tinue to make such investments to make sure that our fleet is greener and to work towards a sustainable future.
Published on: 28/10/2022
DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.
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