The Private Express Industry Is Facing The Test Of Life And Death In The Era Of E-Commerce.

In November 21, 2009, led by STO, the five major "private label" private express companies in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai announced the rise in price within about three days in the three days, and the increase was about 40%. The reasons are basically the same: rare blizzard, cargo explosion, fuel price rise and increase in number.

This is the so-called private express company's collective price increase against Taobao.

But in November 26th, China Unicom and rhyme issued "Taobao sellers' book": "cooperation with Taobao is all normal, so the express price for Taobao sellers is still not higher than that announced by Taobao online."

In fact, the measures to raise prices in China Unicom and rhyme are not only aimed at Taobao.

In addition, the prices of the other two express companies in most parts of the Pearl River Delta have not changed.

Five days before and after, the rising price alliance of private couriers for the first time in more than ten years is a flash in the pan.

The industry generally believed that the strong combination of Taobao and Taobao sellers broke down the alliance of private express delivery.

However, in the case of e-commerce in short supply of express business, what makes private courier companies in a strong position become a weak?

The reason is obviously also from private express itself.

The collapse of the alliance of price increases

On Christmas day, the legal person reporter saw through Taobao's "freight / time monitor" that the price of Tongcheng, Shen Tong, Zhong Tong, Yun Da, and Shenzhen in the same city was 8 yuan per day. At the same time, by consulting the salesmen of the above companies, there was no change in the net price of the five companies.

In addition to Shun Feng express, other private courier companies in Guangdong province reported the first price is generally: 6~8 yuan in the same city, 12~15 yuan outside the province.

But this is only the surface price. In fact, their prices are often below the quoted price.

Mr. Shi, a manager of the Pearl River Delta region of a cleaning company in Shanghai, told the legal person reporter that he often used rhyme express. At present, the price of rhyme reaches 6 yuan and 8 yuan outside the province.

He said that more than half of the five private express enterprises in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai, including China Unicom, came from Taobao. They dare not take the risk.

"The fundamental reason for the collapse of price union is vicious competition."

Yan Zhenkun, senior researcher of Shenzhen Modern Supply Chain Management Research Institute, pointed out that express companies have completed a round of shuffle in the financial crisis, and many small express companies have vanished, but the current express market is still scattered and chaotic, and low price competition is still very serious.

According to statistics, there are more than 30 thousand large and small express enterprises in China, and only more than 6000 in Shanghai alone. Quite a few of them are illegal express companies without business licenses.

There are more than 9000 logistics companies in the United States and only more than 1000 in Japan.

Low price competition not only let Taobao sellers eat courier companies dare not raise prices, but also let them nibble the courier company's small profits.

Industry insiders broke the news that in order to get a bigger share, the courier company often traded with the seller at a price lower than the open price of 2~3 yuan.

For example, on the Taobao website, the freight from Shanghai to Hangzhou is 6 yuan per ticket, but in fact, 10 yuan has gone through 3 tickets.

What is more, some sellers take "I am a big client" as the reason, and replace the service provider as a threat, and grab about 40% discount from the courier company.

According to statistics from Taobao and express company, only one such company loses at least one hundred million yuan a year.

Although the five major express companies in Zhejiang and Shanghai rely on Taobao's business, Taobao is also maintained by express companies. The five major express companies have taken up nearly 80% of Taobao's business volume.

It is surprising that the courier company was bullied by Taobao sellers.

"If we want to raise prices, we must have strong support from Guangdong express Association."

Fan manager said that if the association can come forward to stipulate that the city parts can not be less than eight yuan, the remote parts can not be less than 12 yuan, so we can do some better.

Private express delivery

Research from China Express consultancy network shows that the first cost accounting for express delivery is 5 yuan, and less than 5 yuan is a loss.

In the area of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai, where the express business is most competitive, the express delivery of 5 yuan or less than 5 yuan is very common.

There are mainly three types of express business: courier business in the same city, different places, international and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, and the profit margins of the three have increased in a row, while the domestic private express companies rarely have the international business. Even though SF EXPRESS, known as the private express delivery company, has just opened up Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan business. Most of the international business is occupied by foreign capital giant FedEx, DHL, Tiandi express and joint package.

According to the Cye.com.cn post operation released by the State Post Office in August 2009, the revenue from the express delivery business in the same city, overseas, international and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan accounted for 7.4%, 55.8% and 32% of the total express revenue respectively, and the business volume accounted for 23.6%, 70.5% and 5.9% of the total delivery volume respectively.

A staff member of Shentong Shenzhen company told the "legal person" reporter that the business of the same city basically did not make any profit, and that the business of doing the same city was to earn credibility, and their profit point was mainly in the aviation business.

But now the price of fuel has risen, and the prices charged by airlines have also risen.

"We do Taobao business, one vote is earned 50 Fen, a piece."

"Profit is very thin," he said. "The profit is very thin, but the volume is large, so we can't live without it." "Guangdong,"

According to its introduction, China Unicom has fifty thousand votes in Guangdong every day.

From the national perspective, the Guangdong express delivery costs are relatively high, and Guangdong has not followed the trend of price reduction.

By contrast, the area of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai was much more tragic. The collapse of DDS's Jiangsu and Zhejiang branch in November 2009 is a good example.

Starting in Shenzhen in DDS1997 and entering the Shanghai market, in a short span of five months, the number of daily orders increased from two to 150 thousand.

"DDS originally developed very well in Southern China, but in East China, it adopted the wrong strategy of low price. The cost of the same city express in East China was at 6 yuan, while DDS reduced the price to more than 2 yuan."

Chen Ping, the chairman of the company and the founder of Home Express, pointed out that this is the key reason for the closure of DDS express Jiangsu and Zhejiang branch.

Redemption of private express

"It will be better for us to get rid of the unqualified small express companies until next year."

In the view of Fan Zhong, director of China Communications Guangdong, the root cause of vicious competition is the small number of courier companies. If not many illegal small express companies disrupt the market order, they will not be so weak in negotiations with Taobao sellers.

The new postal law has set a high standard for the capital scale of the express company. Registered capital of the city express business must be more than 500 thousand yuan, the express delivery service in other places is over 1 million yuan, and the international business is over 2 million, and its corresponding "express business operation permit management method" stipulates a year's buffer period for the implementation of the clause.

It is understood that at present, about 80% of private courier companies do not meet the minimum requirements of registered capital.

This means that most of the small express companies will be eliminated if they do not take the form of capital increase or alliance.

This is bad news for the eliminated enterprises, but it is good news from the whole industry.

Yan Zhenkun said to the "legal person" reporter that private express enterprises are taking this opportunity to make use of the form of alliance to become bigger and stronger and to enter the high and middle market with high profit return.

But he stressed that the courier companies could not wait passively for the policy to clear their small competitors, but should take the initiative to create their own core competitiveness. The fundamental problem of the express enterprises exposed by this price increase is that they do not have the core competitiveness.

During the price increase, some interesting stories were reported by the media. Miss Wang, who was about to get married, was looking for express delivery of wedding invitation. However, he was told that the salesman was too busy to come to pick up a wedding invitation from Hangzhou to Tong Tong, Yuan Tong, and every day.

Recommended by colleagues, Miss Wang contacted the HSF express which was less affected by the weather, which successfully sent 50 wedding invitations.

The same blizzard, of course, can not affect other express only, but only for SF.

Why is Shun Feng affected by "less weather"?

Yan Zhenkun told the legal person reporter that Shunfeng is a private courier company that came out in the last round of shuffling. It started from the differentiation route and avoided the slaughter of the low-end market.

Guo Pengcheng, the Development Department of Shanghai Yuantong enterprise, pointed out that in order to win the new market by providing differentiated services, business innovation should be carried out at the present time. Through the operation of value-added service products such as collecting money, signing returns, aging products and so on, we will open up new market space, guide consumers' needs, and gradually form a new express consumer market.

"No matter how the express business depends on e-commerce, it is clear that the e-commerce market is only part of the express business.

Every express company must adjust its strategy as early as possible, take differentiated services to win the vast number of consumers, and differentiate the e-commerce market into a growth point to promote the development of enterprises through differentiated services, rather than being impede by the immature operation of e-commerce.

Guo Pengcheng wrote.