In less than two decades Internet has contributed to a major change in consumer behavior and the structural and industrial changes induced are only in their infancy ... Supplies chain and retails industries undergo through huge frontal shock and only those who revamps to those new models survive!

1. This document is the sole property of Chip4Cheap.com. Apr 2014 © – Author Thierry Laurent-Pellet, Founder
EVO-REVOLUTION IN THE
RETAIL & SHIPMENT INDUSTRIES
by Thierry Laurent-Pellet
Introduction
In less than two decades Internet has contributed to a major change in consumer behavior and
the structural and industrial changes induced are only in their infancy ... Supplies chain and
retails industries undergo through huge frontal shock and only those who revamps to those new
models survive! In The 70s we saw the rise of supermarkets/gallerias, the famous "Malls"
became centers of attraction supporting consumptions (shopping mall) and entertainment
(cinemas are associated with distribution centers by complementary business opportunity), but
also a place where sitting in the queues is synonymous of tremendous waste of time and money.

2. This document is the sole property of Chip4Cheap.com. Apr 2014 © – Author Thierry Laurent-Pellet, Founder
.The retail industry is in deep trouble.
Internet brought what those almost obsolete Malls do not have: the ability to compare which is
so valuable to consumers fond of deals but also the opportunity to move from shop to shop
without leaving the sofa at home. This ability to sell virtually as hundreds of thousands of
geographically scattered shops poses a huge problem: the physical distribution of goods to the
end consumer. We no longer move consumers to distribution centers (Malls) supplied with
products, but we increase the complexity of delivering products to supply with fragmented
destinations. The shipping industry activity has grown dramatically the last decade (FEDEX
stock value rose to $ 140 from $ 40 in less than 14 years) and the number of new actors is
flourishing on the market. The result was not long in coming, malls suffer the brunt of internet
shock and they might try to compete by adding access to amenities and entertainment (cinemas,
restaurants ...), malls are turning into deserts. Davidowitz (S&P500 retail Analyst) announces
that within 5 years 1,100 Malls 2400 will be shut down in the U.S. Consumers are purchasing on
the internet because of the ease of access to products therefore no longer move to avoid the
exorbitant costs (Time, fuel, parking fees).
Only the faster and sharper can remain. .
Giants of the retail industry are born (Amazon.com…) others retailers are disappearing is
because they forgot to jump into the internet business or they did it too late (Virgin Megastore,
La Redoute, 3 Suisses…). Amazon innovates constantly to optimize their business model by
introducing new technologies (Distribution drone test) and diversify their offering. They
aggregate sales and shipping functions in a single explicit process in a much more efficient
fashion (They even work on algorithms for anticipating consumer needs to be sure that the
goods are already in the distribution center closest to the consumer before he ordered). Amazon
is extremely effective, it is run as a startup unlike with mammoths in place for 40 years empire
who do not want to change their model (Carrefour stock to 80 euros in 2000 now less than 30
euros); the difference lies in the service provided. Geo-temporal distance internet (access to
purchase) / delivery of physical goods must shrink dramatically. The equation administering the
markets fragmentation and the reorganization of the "supply chain" arises and depends on
consumer behavior changes, infrastructure implementation capacity and/or to invest/use.
.Consumers behavior are driving the new way to retail.
The consumer behavioral changes take place differently in different cultures and countries. The
Internet shopping has democratized in Western countries as the use of credit cards has become
a secure convenience (and also because of the confidence that major retailers inspire) but tends

3. This document is the sole property of Chip4Cheap.com. Apr 2014 © – Author Thierry Laurent-Pellet, Founder
to drag their feet on the ground in the Eastern Europe where transactions are often made in cash
upon delivery when the order is placed by the web (and, because of the lack of trust in web
banking systems, transactional fraud rate relatively high on credit cards). Conservatively some
Internet companies diversify or develop new business activities based on high frequency
common product consumption in the U.S, "fresh delivery" (Meat, fish, vegetables and fruits…) or
everyday products (Body care , diapers). The frequency of usage justifies the cost of service but
delivery requires rethinking supply chains and distribution facilities. While "drive-in" services in
supermarkets are appearing in France (Existing for at least 30 years in the U.S) , Amazon (and
many others) embarks on those new delivery opportunities with low profit margin but certainly
better in the near future. This is possible only if consumers are willing to change their way of
buying. The Americans have a very different relation to food compare to Europeans and
especially the French, who are very attached to the food relationship aspect (touch/visual).
.The needs for new solutions are emerging.
The machine is anyway definitely on the go to an inexorable run which will ask for great
capacity, flexibility, bandwidth and optimization of cost for transportation pickup and/or
delivery in the last miles... If the retail industry is made to be challenged this is because
manufacturers can act as hub to aggregate orders. End customers would benefit of better price
because ultimately, the quantities of products aggregated directly to the producer will be routed
to the line hauls hubs (Freight company such as: FedEx, TNT, UPS ...) that maximize their cargo
to final destinations. This is the end of intermediate no value chain actors. The last kilometers
(hub to end customer) pose the problem of disassembling package and customization of delivery
and need new solution. To give you some "hints" of solutions that Ship4Cheap © (Shiportunity
©) are implementing, consider the number of people taking their car every day to work with the
workload is almost insignificant compared to the capacity represented by the vehicle used... 100
million people (USA) move only in their vehicle at their own cost ... A real fleet nearby that can
be used to transport goods and property, and this convergence of interests satisfy the users and
beneficiaries of transport. Welcome to the world of social shopping & shipment. From a
statistical point of view 100 million people offer a high probability of carrying capacity and
timely paid ... "Stay tuned," the solution is coming soon!
Contact: Thierry Laurent-Pellet References.
Ship4Cheap.com - CEO & Founder
Email: tlaurent@ship4cheap.com My special thanks goes to Dr Al-Kazzaz,
Tel: +33 785 888 760 PDG de E2C Bridge, for mentoring this article.
Skype: stream2peers