Since its foundation in 2020, YunExpress Europe, the European headquarter of YunExpress and the leading global cross-border e-commerce logistics provider that focuses on European markets, has started providing services in over 30 European countries and established branches in 19 among them. These achievements would not be possible without the effort and commitment of our great local teams. In this series of stories, we would like to share insights into our business operation and how we develop along with it.
In this very first story, we would like to share our journey in Ireland.
YunExpress Europe took its first step in Ireland and founded its local operational branch in late October 2020. In the context of warehouse shortages caused by pre-Brexit stockpiling, it is a serious challenge for every logistics player in Ireland to find suitable warehouses for lease. YunExpress Ireland, however, succeeded in enhancing its first presence by launching a new warehouse with a storage capacity of 1.600 square meters in November.
“It was challenging.” Said Uta Wang, the General Manager of YunExpress Ireland, “Due to the pre-Brexit stockpiling, demand for warehouses surged, and the Covid-19 pandemic even worsened the shortage situation. Back then, when we started to execute the plan to find a warehouse for lease, there weren’t many options available in the market. The competition was fierce.”
Luckily, YunExpress Ireland stood out in this competition with its unparalleled global influence and growth potential in the cross-border e-commerce sector. It also reflected the confidence of Irish business partners in the future development of YunExpress. As a win-win outcome, YunExpress Ireland will certainly bring its strong economic performance and brand influence to Ireland.
“Of course this confidence is not one-way, YunExpress has attached great importance to the Irish market.” Uta said, “The original plan was to lease a warehouse for about 500 square meters. But after a comprehensive assessment of the Irish market, especially considering the opportunities brought by Brexit, we decided to enlarge the space capacity to 1.600 square meters.”
As a country with 4.9 million populations, Ireland is famous for its high e-commerce penetration rate. Furthermore, Brexit has brought extra opportunities for the cross-border e-commerce sector and therefore the logistics industry in Ireland. Aligning with its strategic plan, YunExpress Ireland responded quickly by establishing a direct route from continental Europe to Ireland. This route ensures both cost-and time-efficiency, by combining direct flights from China to the Netherlands, and from Dutch port to Irish port.
In addition to this rapid process in the past four months, Uta has a clear plan for the entire year of 2021.
“In 2021, we would like to focus on several key sectors. Firstly, we will improve our current C2G (China to Global) business and deliver the best services in all existing areas. On this basis, we plan to expand our customer base on a global scale, by developing G2G (Global to Global) products and services. For this purpose, we are actively looking for strategic business partners in Ireland, such as domestic e-commerce platforms or the local Irish brands who want to expand their business globally.” She indicated, “We also plan to expand our own team. By the end of year, the team will grow up to 8 to 10 people in Ireland.”
Another important strategic plan of YunExpress Ireland is to provide fulfillment services in the coming years. “We firmly believe that we can further explore our business by combining parcel delivery services and fulfilment services.” Uta added, “Becoming a professional logistics provider means that we should be able to connect the entire logistics ecosystem, from package collection, to customs clearance, to fulfillment services and to last mile delivery. It’s a long-term strategic movement, but we are working hard towards this direction.”
2020 has witnessed the rapid development of cross-border e-commerce sectors brought by the pandemic; however, such development also implies the change in people’s lifestyle and consumer behaviors.
“Such rapid growth generates both challenges and opportunities for us.” Uta said, “Ireland is a country that mainly exports high-tech and agricultural products, with a relatively small domestic e-commerce market and a high FBA penetration rate. We could say that it is niche market. But on the other hand, we also see that many large logistics companies, namely DHL, UPS and DPD, are proactively expanding their business in Ireland.” As she explained, “I think it is in line with the development trend of e-commerce. As a professional logistics partner, we need to be forward-looking.”
Accordingly, YunExpress has carried out its strategic plan in Ireland in time, as the routes from Ireland to 27 European countries have been set up to provide comprehensive and efficient logistics services from Ireland to Europe.
“Comprehensiveness, timeliness and low cost are our strengths. Together with our local business partners, we aim to execute G2G (Global to Global) strategy.” Uta added “Currently we are still looking for local business partners, such as domestic e-commerce platforms or the local Irish brands who want to expand their business globally. We are looking forward to a quick chat with any company that is interested in partnering with us.”
All in all, it is an exciting time to all e-commerce players and logistics partners to take action in this very promising market. Ready to take your next step to boost your success in Ireland? You are more than welcome to contact Uta Wang via the email: uta.wang@yunexpress.com.
