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Over the past few years, it can be observed that companies have moved from conventional brick-and-mortar to e-commerce form. It is not just the business presence that has changed but the habits of the customers have also witnessed an extensive change over the years. Retailers are finding newer and more effective ways to satisfy the transforming customer needs. With order-fulfilment being the backbone of any retail business, companies are finding a way to expedite the last mile delivery while keeping the costs low.

Last mile logistics is the last step of the delivery process from a distribution centre or facility to the customers. It can range from a few meters to more than 50 miles. It is the stage at which the goods finally arrive at the customer’s doorstep. It can be an expensive process but the willingness of the customers to pay premiums for better last mile delivery services offsets the cost. Customers are ready to pay high charges for same-day or instant delivery.

There are some problems that are associated with the last mile delivery:

• In the suburbs or rural areas, delivery destinations can be miles apart, even though they fall under the same particular route. Also, the number of packages to be delivered at these points are quite low which results in a higher delivery cost to the company.
• Urban delivery does not have large gaps between destinations, but they face a challenge of navigating through traffic and parking space problems.
• Another challenge faced is that the large products require skilled unpacking as well as complex assembly. Shippers need to make sure that the delivered product is in compliance with the product sold.

There are many possible innovative ways in which these challenges could be overcome. Some of them are as follows:

• Autonomous delivery vehicles and self-driving vehicles like drones and robots will be used extensively to achieve faster, efficient, and cheaper delivery.
• Delivery warehouses can hold products for consumers who prefer a self pick-up of products from the nearest location.
• Route optimization technologies can help cut down on delivery cost and time of transit considerably.
• Transportation management system (TMS) should also integrate real time assistance of last mile delivery through automated asset tracking and alerts to both shippers and consumers.
• Retailers, logistics providers, and consumers can connect mutually to get the orders delivered efficiently by ensuring the delivery in the first attempt itself. Hence reducing the additional cost and time that goes into multiple delivery attempts.

The last mile delivery shall always remain a critical part of modern trade. So, companies should come up with innovative ways to overcome the challenges posed. Innovative and cost-effective last mile delivery and logistics solutions can be leveraged by collaborating with Chowgule Brothers Pvt. Ltd.