Russian express delivery operator SPSR Express recorded a strong, double-digit revenue increase of 21% to RUB 3 billion (€39.9 million) in the first half of 2015 while its total shipping volumes rose 15%, compared to the same period last year.
During the first six months of this year, the company’s revenues from the B2B segment increased by 12% while B2C revenues were 16% higher. In many respects, this dynamic development is due to SPSR significantly strengthening its international activities, in line with its overall strategy.
The company said its improved half-year performance needs to be seen in the context of the stagnating logistics market in Russia, accompanied by a 3.4% GDP drop on the corresponding period last year. In the first six months of 2015, the Russian road transport market declined by 8.6% and rail transport by 0.7%. The situation on the warehousing market is also deteriorating, with the amount of vacant space increasing by 10%.
While the Russian e-commerce market continued to grow, its growth rate slowed to 10-15%, down from 28%. The driving force remains cross-border trade with growth amounting to 40-45%, of which 70% is generated through shipments from China, the company pointed out.
To leverage on this booming cross-border trade with China, SPSR Express signed important partnerships with leading Chinese e-retailers Alibaba and JD.com this year.
In February 2015, it implemented two important projects with international e-retailer Aliexpress, part of Alibaba Group. The first one is a co-branded SPSR Express-AliExpress order pick-up centre, which is a new area for the company. SPRS Express is currently developing its own network of ‘click & collect’ order pick-up centres across the country. A successful testing period will provide the basis for opening around 10 of such centres in Moscow and St. Petersburg under the SPSR brand this year.
In addition, SPSR Express has been integrated into Alibaba Group’s global information platform of logistics partners as the first authorised express operator of AliExpress in Russia. The agreement was signed through China Smart Logistics, the logistics network used by Alibaba Group companies, including AliExpress.
In a second project with AliExpress, SPSR has launched the so-called ‘Turkish Fashion Hub’ as part of which AliExpress is now offering major Turkish fashion brands via its trade platform for Russian online shoppers. AliExpress selects the most appropriate and interesting brands for the Russian market and helps them establish their showcase on AliExpress. SPSR Express is responsible for attracting brands, selecting collections, preparing product descriptions, assisting with customs clearance and making express deliveries or orders to the Russian customers.
In addition, SPSR Express signed a Memorandum of Understanding with JD.com in May, becoming its first authorised private logistics operator in Russia. As part of the partnership, SPSR Express delivers products from the online platform JD.com to Russian shoppers via parcel terminals and to the order pick-up centres. The delivery to the terminals is managed by SPSR’s subsidiary Pickpoint.
Apart from e-commerce, the second trend in SPRS’s activities during the first half-year of 2015 was strengthening its position in the field of fulfillment. Revenues from the fulfillment centre increased by a very high 80% during that period, compared to H1 2014, thanks to partnerships with companies such as Wikimart and Eaglemoss.
The third trend is the launch of a new SPSR Express product line, which corresponds to the most recent needs of distance-selling companies in different types of delivery (from economical to ultra-fast) and additional services. Also in H1 2015, SPSR Express upgraded rates and delivery terms of the "Export" service thus “better responding to the best market expectations of cross-border transportation”, the company stressed.
SPSR Express General Director Vladimir Solodkin concluded: “Today, SPSR Express remains the most dynamically developing company on the Russian express delivery market and takes all the necessary steps to maintain its leading position.”
