The first and last mile according to Macioszek (2017) are the most cost ‘intensive’ and the reasons behind this is that it takes time and resources to put together loads and organise transport, as well as dealing with the spiralling transport costs and delays in the road infrastructure. The consolidation of individual orders into one vehicle is fraught with issues and the more customer centric that a business becomes the more the demands shift from what is best for the business and what is best for the customer. This is the last mile journey but the first mile is a question of economics for the logistic companies and often related to scale, regional labour markets, access to ports and network collaborations (Arora et al. 2020).
For most sellers online and bricks and mortar business that operate in the buildings supply industry the last mile is the most important and can be critical to actually making a profit on an order. With the increased pain and pressure on the supply chain (Alicke and Swan, 2021) and a race to the bottom with the price, it is imperative to get the last mile costed accordingly. Also factoring in the increased rate and propensity for returns it is critical. A simple and often failed delivery can mean a big waste of resource. This is where the right solution can solve a problem, give better customer service and save money and resource. It is also a solution that can enhance the reporting on a sustainable message. It is proven that the best way to encourage sustainability is to build it into an operation that is optimised (Mueller et al. 2020). Last mile deliveries can be optimised by using the right solution and breaking down the pain points of loading plans, routing, vehicle selection, inventory availability etcetera. It can give back time and resource to an operation and the personnel involved to improve the culture. This also improves customer relations that often put strains on customer service and puts them at loggerheads with logistic and fulfilment teams. There are many solutions out there but finding one applicable to an industry is difficult. This is where grow forward can support the business to introduce a platform that is completely applicable.
References
Arora,S., Bohm,W., Dolan,K., Gould,R. And McConnell, S. (2020) McKinsey and Company : Resilence in transport and logistics. Available at https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/operations/our-insights/resilience-in-transport-and-logistics (Accessed online October 2022)
Macioszek,E. (2017) First and Last Mile Delivery – Problems and Issues. Available at https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-62316-0_12#ref-CR8 (Accessed online October 2022)
Alice,K. And Swan,D. (2021) McKinsey and Company : Diagnosing the pain in your supply chain. [Podcast] Available at https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/operations/our-insights/diagnosing-the-pain-in-your-supply-chain (Accessed online October 2022)
Mueller,C., Seber,S., Shulman, J., and Stover,K, (2020) Mckinsey and Company : operations-driven sustainability. Available at https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/operations/our-insights/operations-driven-sustainability (Accessed online October 2022)