low-wage countries

CASE STUDY: relocation of dc to low-wage country

Industry:
Eurasian Publishing Company
Company Size:
300+
Project Location:
Germany/Poland
Problem Statement:
After our customer's patent for 3D postcards and maps had expired, they were facing massive pressure from European competitors who were now able to develop, produce and sell very comparable products on the European market. Our customer's strategic response was to add a new sales channel to their sales approach: e-commerce (Amazon, eBay, etc.). This channel promised great margin potential, but required a lean order processing and fulfillment process, preferably in a low-wage country. If our customer would be able to relocate their German distribution center to a low-cost country in Eastern Europe, they would most likely be able to lift the sales potential in e-commerce.
STREAMLINERS’ Approach and Solution
Meeting:
Understand complexity of material handling and order fulfillment of selling the customer's products through e-commerce
Deep Dive:
Labor cost analysis of Eastern European low-wage countries; logistics cost simulation of various locations in Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia; conceptual design of order processing and logistics process
Hypothesis:
E-commerce on a B2C level is indeed handling intensive. If the future distribution center would be located in a low-wage country within a 200 mi/300 km radius of the German border, a significant cost advantage compared to our customer's competition (UK and France) should lead to a successful business case and a significant increase in sales.
Project:
1 consultant
9 weeks
Deliverables:
Labor cost analysis for Eastern European low-wage countries performed
Katowice in Poland selected as best-fit DC location
Order processing and fulfillment processes set up
GO Live 4 months after first meeting
Bottom Line Impact:
Reduction of order processing and fulfillment costs per unit by >70%
Increase of annual sales by >$1.2 M

Low-wage Location Study

 

Fees vs. Bottom Line Impact