Chinese home delivery business sees strong growth
Carriers say they are seeing a boom year for their services, as more consumers do their shopping with the assistance of delivery services.
Since beginning in 2000, the domestic delivery business in Taiwan has grown sharply. According to Taiwan Pelican Express Co., the second largest domestic carriers in terms of size, the current average usage in Taiwan is 0.7 items per head per year.With the prevalence of online shopping, TV channel orders and multilevel marketing, savvy customers have become aware of the benefit of home carriers, and the market size could be valued at NTD.6 billion or more, Taiwan Pelican Express Manager Chieh Hsin-hsin said.
The dominant brand !X Takkyubin under the Uni-President Enterprises Co. !X has around 13,000 parcel collection windows. With the back up of Seven-11 chain stores, Takkyubin holds the largest market share. With a target of 60 percent growth this year, Takkyubin is seeking partnerships with department stores and confectionery businesses.
T-Join Transportation Co. is a listed company specializing in shipping and transportation. As the third largest home delivery company, T-Join is predicting 21 percent growth in its turnover this year. With only 160 collection windows, the company reported NT$1.4 billion in turnover last year, exceeding Taiwan Pelican Express by NT$0.2 billion.
The company started to set up in business in traditional wholesaling areas, and provides credit card payment services.
T-Join is so far the only carrier that accepts credit card payments. A service coined COD, or credit card on demand, was introduced last year. The company teamed up with Taihsin Bank, and offered online payment services with competitive prices. It also has a unit dispatching items to the mainland.
Although credit card payments are subject to 1 percent to 1.5 percent handling fees, T-Join said the company and Taihsin Bank are willing to bear much of the surcharges. “In logistics, the demand for ‘last mile’ is growing,” T-Join Vice President Hung Jin-ku said. “In other words, the previous model of B2B (business to business) has shifted to that of B2C (business to consumers), or even C2C (consumers to consumers).”
“As domestic demand picks up, carriers can easily eat into the market by offering customers creative, value added touches,” Hung said.
