Last Mile Delivery for e-Commerce: Challenges, Benefits, and Future

Abstract

The article focuses on the study of the essence of the logistics of miles in the supply chain. It is proved that in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, demand for online orders will increase and, accordingly, the role of logistics of the last mile in the chain of delivery of goods to the final consumer will increase. The main prerequisites for the development of the last mile logistics market in electronic commerce in Ukraine are identified. In the course of the study, it was found that for the organization of logistics of the last mile, the following factors should be taken into account: delivery speed, tracking accuracy, warranty and insurance, convenience, cost and price. It was determined that in the city of Kiev, under quarantine conditions, with increasing demand for food products, logistics of the last mile becomes the most relevant. With the development of technology and competition between enterprises, the consumer expects that the goods will be delivered within a few hours, but in this situation, with increased demand for online orders, the consumer can wait for his order for a few days. The problems that retail chains encounter when completing an order and organizing the delivery of goods by online stores in the pandemic circumstances are considered. It is noted that the service zakaz.ua provided the opportunity to make online purchases on its own platform for such retail chains as Novus, Metro, Auchan, Megamarket, Buffet. The market of postal and courier services in Ukraine is analyzed. The evaluation of the choice of postal logistics operators in the Ukrainian market is carried out and the main characteristics of the courier services are indicated, their advantages and disadvantages are determined. The features of the implementation of crowdsourcing principles in companies providing courier services are analyzed. The prospects for the development of logistics of the last mile in electronic commerce in Ukraine and in the world have been defined. Given the international experience to save human resources in the current situation, it has been proven that the latest technologies for delivering goods to consumers in hard-to-reach places using artificial intelligence can be used.