Germany’s Hermes Fulfilment and US-based Kenco have teamed up to provide seamless distributionservices for online retailers on both sides of the Atlantic.
Kenco, a leading provider of value-added distribution, public warehousing, transportationservices and intelligent information technology, and the German logistics firm now offer integratedinternational retail and logistics services.
In the USA, Kenco provides warehousing and distribution of online orders from more than 100distribution centers, with Hermes Fulfilment providing online retail support including web storedesign, payment, accounts receivable and other services.
In Europe, Kenco’s domestic online retail customers have access to Hermes Fulfillment’sdistribution centre at Haldensleben in Germany.
“In this way both we and our customers benefit from the know-how of a local logisticsprovider with country-specific expertise,” said Judy Craig, vice president of sales, Kenco.
“The quality and the spectrum of the services offered by Kenco and Hermes Fulfilment providethe perfect fit,” said Max Niclas Bense, international business development manager, HermesFulfilment. “With Kenco as our partner, we can provide our customers in the US with the highstandards that they expect from us.”
Austrian garment manufacturer Wolford is one of the companies already benefiting from thecooperation between Kenco and Hermes Fulfilment. Through its web stores the luxury label now hasoperations in 13 European countries and the USA. Additional markets in and outside Europe are tofollow shortly.
More brands and online retailers are targeting international markets, and supply chainproviders need to support these retailers in new markets, Bense said.
Retail expansion into a foreign market must be executed with great care and attention todetail. Online stores must be tailored to the different needs and demands of local markets, Hermespointed out. Varying requirements include different product selections, the concept of the storeitself, languages and methods of payment, for example.
“It’s not just a question of translating the contents of the online store into differentlanguages. If you want to expand into foreign markets you will need to understand the local marketsand develop country-specific store solutions with an experienced services provider,” Bensestressed.
Kenco Logistics operates more than 100 warehouses across the USA and Canada, withtransportation provided by sister company Kenco Transportation Services.
Hermes Fulfilment, set up in 2006 as the group’s warehousing arm, operates four logisticscentres with some 5,000 employees and is fully integrated into the Hermes Europe network. Ithandles some 60 million orders and moves about 260 million goods per year.
