“Time to market is critical … ocean
transport does not allow the
velocity required in the supply chain”
flexibility or TOMAS SONNTAG
services provider with a strong involvement in the fashion/lifestyle products sector, believes high-value fashion products have a particular requirement for air freight. “Te high-end luxury brand
customers that Logwin works with use air freight exclusively and that will continue to be the case. Time to market is critical in that low-volume, high-value sector and ocean transport does not allow the flexibility or velocity required in the supply chain,” he commented. More generally, claim other
international logistics industry sources, the fashion sector has in recent years followed many other global industries in using air freight to reduce inventory levels and associated costs.
Supply on demand James Woodrow, general manager cargo, sales and marketing, for Hong Kong- based carrier Cathay Pacific Airways, says the fashion industry has developed a growing understanding of the “opportunity cost” of having the wrong
stock in store. Te airline transports growing volumes of fashion products worldwide out of, and increasingly into, China and other Asian countries. “A number of fashion companies have developed highly sophisticated supply chains based on ‘demand pull’. Teir stores are supplied up to twice a week by air from a central warehouse, thus ensuring that the goods which are selling are on the shelf at all times,” he explained. “Tat has the added advantage of not
having the ‘out of fashion’ items clogging up the shelves and avoids the need for the cut-price sales which are usually required to shift that stock. Te increased cost of air freight is more than compensated for by the reduced ‘out of stock’ occurrences and the significant reduction in sale terms.” A second key fashion industry trend
generating an increased demand for air freight support is the dramatic rise in e-commerce – the sale of products, both domestically and internationally, using the internet. “Te rise in fashion
product sales via the e-commerce channel is generating increased use of air freight, particularly in the area of b2c (business to consumer) fulfilment,” confirmed DHL’s Lau. SEKO’s Emerson says that trend has
opened up new business opportunities for companies like his own. Expanding on that point, he explained that for some retailers in the UK, for example, their website has become their biggest store. “We spotted that there was an
opportunity for us to become the back end of that – the consumer buys a product on-line and then our system picks, packs and fulfils the order,” commented Emerson. “We now also do that in the US, Hong Kong and mainland China as well as in the UK. Over the last couple of years that has become a very big part of our business.”
AIR LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT 27
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