74% of Indian Businesses struggle with Last-Mile Logistics, reports Locus Maturity Assessment 2023

BANGALORE : About 74% of Indian organizations have scope for significant improvement in their last-mile fulfillment to provide the best speed, convenience, and delivery experience to customers, according to early findings from Locus’ Last-Mile Maturity Assessment (LMMA). The LMMA is a unique, industry-first benchmarking tool that helps enterprises understand their strengths, uncover new opportunities for growth in their logistics operations, and provide personalized business insights.

The Assessment saw participation from leading enterprises from India, UAE, Indonesia, North America, Saudi Arabia, and from other emerging markets. These companies operate across diverse sectors such as 3PL & CEP, Manufacturing, E-commerce, and Retail.

Through a comprehensive 5-point rating system, the assessment categorizes businesses into the Emerging, Growth, and Optimized stages, facilitating targeted improvements tailored to each organization’s specific needs. In India, 86% of 3PL and CEP businesses and 67% of Retail sector players are positioned within the ‘Growth’ stage, which indicates that with the right guidance and tools, such businesses can unlock an unparalleled scale and potential.

Sharing his insights on the latest assessment report, Mehul Kapadia, Chief Revenue Office at Locus said, “Last-mile delivery is a rapidly changing industry whose significance cannot be ignored for companies with a customer-centric focus. However, in India, almost 70% of the organizations are not confident that their Last Mile operations will deliver real-world growth and memorable consumer experiences. To aid them in their growth journey, companies that complete the assessment recieve a comprehensive report that highlights the inefficiencies in their last-mile fulfillment processes. They also get to access recommendations and insights that will empower them to gain a competitive edge in their delivery experiences.”

The Locus Maturity Assessment 2023 reflects a concerning reality for the Indian E-commerce industry, as it falls short of the global average. Meanwhile, Retail emerges as a shining star, showcasing the best performance among all industries, closely followed by Manufacturing. Delving further into the five fundamental performance indicators within the last mile — Last-Mile Excellence, Customer Experience, Workforce Empowerment, Advanced Analytics, and Sustainability— shows that Indian organizations struggle the most in achieving Last Mile Excellence, a pivotal aspect in today’s competitive landscape.