Like many UK-based online retailers, Bond Touch was faced with increasingly complex logistics at a time when the rules were changing every day. Working with a logistics fulfillment partner gave them easier access to continental Europe and expert advice & support in dealing with the post-Brexit reality. Read on to discover how they succeeded with Omnipack’s help.
The UK e-commerce sector was among the industries that had to endure the most uncertainty caused by the changes brought about by Brexit. How would Brexit affect international shipments and the tax and customs issues that go with them? Would UK-based businesses serving customers in continental Europe be able to preserve the cost and delivery time advantages that have driven the global rise of e-commerce?
Suddenly, 15 billion pounds of extra costs were expected to hit UK e-commerce platforms in the form of double taxation, increased return processing and undelivered parcels. This was confirmed by industry data. Within the first year after Brexit, UK exports to continental Europe were down by 40% and nearly 70% of retailers reported fewer orders from EU countries.
The future of British e-commerce was suddenly not as bright as it was before.
Bond Touch finds a way forward
Among the companies facing these challenges was a “team of dreamers and creators” that took an idea that first appeared at a hack-a-thon and turned it into reality. Bond Touch is a stylish bracelet that connects couples and lets them send haptic messages to each other, reminders that they’re never truly apart.
As an online business, shipping logistics and meeting customer expectations from afar were always going to be challenges for Bond Touch. These problems became even more difficult to handle as the details of Brexit became law.
Working with a UK-based third-party logistics partner at the time, the team behind Bond Touch understood the limitations they would soon be working under and the difficulties ahead. Armed with this advance warning about potential issues and determined to proactively realign their operations, Bond Touch started looking at other options.
Working with Omnipack
Bond Touch reached out to Omnipack because they understood that an EU-based logistics fulfillment partner could more easily solve their number one pain point — dealing with trade barriers between the UK and continental Europe.
Specifically, they wanted a fulfillment center located in Poland because of the proximity to their major markets, which also meant the ability to offer next-day delivery.
After talking with our team, representatives of Bond Touch felt that Omnipack understood their operations and felt confident that we could assist them with their shipping needs. Omnipack was entrusted with all areas of logistics - inbound, warehousing, pick & pack, delivery, as well as handling returns.
Onboarding was slightly complicated by COVID but arrangements were made to accommodate everyone’s needs.
Once Omnipack got to work, Bond Touch noticed immediate improvements in the reliability and speed of the pick and pack process, which went from more than two days to one business day. This, in turn, directly impacted the most important metric of all — the time it takes for customers to receive their orders.
In addition to these benefits, outsourcing their logistics needs has given Bond Touch the ability to devote their time and resources to other things, like developing their brand, driving traffic to their site, providing great customer support and more.
Not having to deal with the time-consuming matter of returns — always a big issue in e-commerce — is also another source of extra time that Bond Touch can invest back in their business.
