In Central and Eastern Europe too, electronics companies and retailers are increasingly choosing to entrust customer deliveries to qualified external partners. tectraxx has noted the trend and is developing customised B2C concepts for the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.
Four years ago, the border posts were dismantled overnight between Austria and the neighbouring states that had signed up to the latest round of EU enlargement. The mental borders are now also coming down in the attitudes of manufacturers and retailers serving the needs of customers in Central and Eastern Europe. Gerald Marx who is responsible for Technical Distribution & Home Delivery at tectraxx reports a rising demand for cross-border logistics solutions: ”A number of our regular high-profile customers in Austria have recently expressed interest, especially concerning the markets of the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia.” And the logistics expert also knows what the companies’ priorities are there. Above all, a uniform level of service is desired, with the same parameters and quality indicators. ”Our customers want to source everything from a single provider – and that’s exactly what we offer.”
Expertise flows into new markets
Expertise that tectraxx has accumulated over the past ten years or so in Austria is now being brought to bear in the surrounding markets. The hi-tech logistics company is currently building up its home delivery capacity in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. This includes all the necessary services, so that purchasers no longer have to do anything. ”This involves making appointments with the end user and a variety of special services such as the removal of the old appliance, the unpacking and professional installation of the new unit, and finally the disposal of packaging materials,” explains Gerald Marx. ”We are currently running a detailed market study to evaluate the differences between countries in terms of customer requirements, general conditions and the necessary level of service. On the basis of this, we will make any necessary adjustments to the portfolio and to levels of service.” Marx assumes, however, that there will be only minimal deviation in Central and Eastern Europe from the established standards in Austria and that local needs can be covered with existing expertise.
Groundbreaking pilot project
The potential that exists is shown by a current project in Slovakia where tectraxx parent company Gebrüder Weiss has been working with its longstanding customer Nay, a market leader in retail consumer electronics, to put its services for end consumers on a new footing – albeit nationally rather than on a cross-border basis. Previously, Gebrüder Weiss had been responsible only for deliveries to the chain of stores, but in October 2011 after a twelve-month planning period, a pilot project for B2C deliveries in three regions was launched. ”Nay has a central warehouse in Senec,” says Markus Jelleschitz, GW Director for Slovakia. ”The goods are collected from there and delivered within 24 hours or to suit customer convenience.” A dedicated SPOC (Single Point of Contact) team processes the electronic orders and contacts the customer within two hours to make an appointment. The SPOC arranges a two-hour delivery slot, for example between nine and eleven clock, the latest being 7pm. ”The services that we offer include carrying the goods to the place of use, maybe several floors up, removing the packaging and also disposing of the old appliance if the customer so requires,” says Jelleschitz. ”If it is a washing machine, refrigerator or dishwasher, we will also connect it to the mains.” GW staff have been specially trained for this work. Assuming that the four-month pilot project is successful, the National Director says that a nationwide rollout will follow. This will make GW the first logistics company to operate in this area on the Slovak market.
Outsourcing now in vogue
Markus Jelleschitz and Gerald Marx both agree that this opens up huge scope for hi-tech logistics in Central and Eastern Europe. One major contributory factor is the steady rise in online shopping. While retail chains have their own small vans for consumer electronics with which they manage their own deliveries, a trend is already emerging towards outsourcing the transport logistics together with the relevant technical services to professional partners. ”However, the issue of quality has taken on an even higher priority in Slovakia than in Austria,” says GW Manager Jelleschitz, addressing a particular characteristic of this market. And in this context, he even refers to a ”service war” among retailers that can quickly make the logistics side unprofitable. For example, customers are sometimes offered same-day delivery within three hours, ”which is simply not financially viable”. The advantages of working with strong logistics partners are clear: transport costs are minimised and transparent to all parties. And good service ensures customer satisfaction.
