Since the beginning of this year, semi-managed accounts have gradually become the main mode promoted by major cross-border e-commerce platforms.2024At the 9th Shenzhen International Cross-border E-commerce Expo,Temu,SHEINEnterprises such as AliExpress and Tmall have shifted their investment promotion focus to the semi-managed model. What impact will the release of the 'Opinions on Expanding Cross-border E-commerce Exports and Promoting Overseas Warehouse Construction' have on the industry and related enterprises? What are the difficulties in deploying overseas warehouses, and where do the barriers for enterprises lie? What are the advantages and disadvantages of the emerging 'semi-managed' overseas warehouse model, and will it become the mainstream model of the industry in the future?
Frost & SullivanFrost & Sullivan,Wu Yunhan, an analyst from Frost & Sullivan's Greater China region, was interviewed by Securities Daily to discuss the cross-border e-commerce 'semi-managed' model.
Securities Daily
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Q: How should this policy be interpreted? Under what industry context was it promulgated? Why was the 'Opinions' released at this time? What impacts will it have on industry development and related enterprises?
With the transformation of global consumption habits and the explosive growth of cross-border e-commerce markets, traditional foreign trade models face an upgrade requirement. The construction and development of overseas warehouses have become key factors in enhancing cross-border trade efficiency and strengthening the international supply chain. Therefore, the Ministry of Commerce, in conjunction with multiple departments including the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance, has jointly formulated the 'Opinions on Expanding Cross-border E-commerce Exports and Promoting Overseas Warehouse Construction'. The aim is to encourage and guide enterprises to accelerate the layout of overseas warehouses through measures such as policy support, service optimization, and environmental creation. This will broaden cross-border e-commerce export channels, improve cross-border logistics efficiency and after-sales service levels, further promote the high-quality development of China's cross-border e-commerce industry, facilitate the transformation and upgrading of foreign trade, and deepen international trade cooperation.
The core content of the 'Opinions on Expanding Cross-border E-commerce Exports and Promoting Overseas Warehouse Construction' revolves around five key points: First, policies encourage the active cultivation of cross-border e-commerce business entities, supporting enterprises in exploring and innovating cross-border e-commerce business models such as social commerce and live streaming commerce to adapt to the needs of different markets. Second, it emphasizes the need to increase financial support, including fiscal subsidies, tax incentives, financial assistance, and information services, to reduce operational costs for enterprises and encourage more cross-border e-commerce companies to deploy overseas warehouses globally. Third, it proposes to strengthen the construction of relevant infrastructure and logistics systems, optimize the global network layout of overseas warehouses, improve logistics efficiency and shorten delivery cycles, while also strengthening the digital and intelligent construction of overseas warehouses to enhance inventory management and order processing capabilities. Fourth, it optimizes supervision and services, establishes and improves risk prevention and control mechanisms, ensures the security of cross-border e-commerce transactions, and maintains good market order. Fifth, it emphasizes the need to strengthen international cooperation, align with the regulatory policies of destination countries, ensure the legality and compliance of overseas warehouse construction, and promote the deep integration and mutual trust of the international supply chain.
The introduction of the 'Opinions on Expanding Cross-border E-commerce Exports and Promoting Overseas Warehouse Construction' has injected strong momentum into the cross-border e-commerce industry, greatly promoting its development and upgrading. For related enterprises, this means lower operating costs and higher competitiveness. At the same time, this policy also helps enterprises better adapt to changes in international trade rules, promote stable foreign trade growth, and drive high-quality economic development.
Q: In recent years, the industry has developed rapidly, but some cross-border e-commerce companies that have deployed overseas warehouses have not received satisfactory performance feedback. What are the difficulties in deploying overseas warehouses, and where does the threshold for enterprises manifest?
1capital threshold
The high initial investment and operating costs pose a major challenge. The selection, leasing or purchase of overseas warehouses, warehouse renovation, installation of automation equipment, and daily operations all require substantial capital investment. Coupled with different national tax policies, labor costs, and exchange rate fluctuations, cost control becomes particularly complex. In addition, the long initial investment recovery period places high demands on a company's capital chain and long-term financial planning capabilities.
2) Supply chain management threshold
Supply chain and inventory management pose certain challenges for industry participants. Precise forecasting of market demand, balancing inventory, and avoiding overstocking or shortages require strong data analysis capabilities and flexible supply chain management systems. At the same time, inventory synchronization across multiple markets and channels, as well as order processing, requires extremely high levels of system integration and automation.
3Technical threshold
The technical threshold for overseas warehouse layout mainly involves warehousing management systems (WMS), order management systemOMSThe internationalization and intelligence level of (the overseas warehouse) require efficient integration with enterprise systems to achieve precise inventory management, rapid order processing, and logistics tracking. In addition, the application of automated equipment and Internet of Things technology requires enterprises to possess a high level of technical expertise in software and hardware integration, operation and maintenance monitoring, and remote technical support. Finally, the cultivation of technical talents and team building are also part of the technical threshold, requiring professionals to operate and maintain complex technical systems. These together constitute the complexity and high threshold of the overseas warehouse's technical layout.
4market adaptation threshold
The market adaptation threshold for overseas warehouse layout lies in deeply understanding and quickly responding to the market characteristics, consumption habits, legal policies, and logistics infrastructure differences of different countries and regions. Enterprises need to accurately position their target markets, flexibly adjust their commodity strategies and inventory allocation to cope with regional demand changes. At the same time, they must establish strong localized service support, including language customer service, after-sales returns and exchanges, and localized brand marketing, to enhance consumer trust and satisfaction. In addition, the ability to cope with external risks such as trade environment fluctuations and currency exchange rate changes, as well as collaboration with local partners, is also an important part of market adaptability. This places extremely high demands on enterprises' market insight, resource integration capabilities, and strategic flexibility.
Q: Since the beginning of this year, a new model of overseas warehouse 'semi-managed' services has emerged. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this model, and will it become the mainstream industry model in the future?
The overseas warehouse semi-managed model, as a compromise for enterprises deploying cross-border logistics, combines the advantages of self-built and full outsourcing, providing enterprises with a more flexible operational management approach.
Its advantages are mainly reflected in several aspects: Firstly, it combines cost control with flexibility. Enterprises can independently manage core businesses such as inventory planning and order processing, while entrusting specialized third parties with warehousing operations and local distribution. This not only maintains direct control over key businesses but also effectively reduces initial investment and operational costs, achieving an optimized balance between cost and efficiency. Secondly, it involves risk sharing. Under the semi-managed model, logistics service providers, with their rich local experience and resources, can effectively handle various challenges in warehousing logistics, including compliance issues, language barriers, and emergency situations, helping enterprises reduce operational risks.
However, this model also has certain disadvantages. One is the increased coordination and communication costs. Although some businesses have outsourced certain tasks, enterprises still need to maintain close communication with third-party logistics service providers to ensure system compatibility, information synchronization, and consistency in operational processes. This undoubtedly increases the complexity of management and communication costs. The second is the potential data security risks. Enterprises need to share sensitive data such as inventory and orders with third parties. How to ensure secure transmission and compliant use of data, prevent information leakage, becomes an issue that cannot be ignored.
Therefore, the overseas warehouse semi-managed model, with its cost-effectiveness, specialized services, and risk diversification, has provided many cross-border e-commerce enterprises with new logistics solution options. However, it also requires enterprises to pay attention to communication and coordination during cooperation, flexibly adjust management strategies, and strengthen data security management to maximize the advantages of this model and overcome potential challenges.
*This interview has been published in Securities Daily Reporter: Wang Jingru, original title: "Hybrid hosting" becomes the main mode for cross-border e-commerce ">
