DHL plans to open a fashion & apparel centre of excellence in Shanghai in the fourth quarter of 2010 to take advantage of China’s $7.5bn fashion logistics market.
The move is part of the company’s plan to enhance its supply chain solutions, infrastructure and human resources to cater to rising demand for faster, more efficient door-to-door distribution in the multi-billion US dollar industry.
It will give the group a network of seven such centres across the Asia Pacific, including one in Hong Kong.
“China’s fashion and apparel industry is undergoing fundamental changes and has evolved significantly since the start of the global economic slowdown,” said Kelvin Leung, CEO, North Asia Pacific, DHL Global Forwarding. Pointing to expected compounded annual growth in China’s domestic apparel retail market of 21 per cent through 2014 from US$305 billion last year, Leung added, “Rapid urbanization is continuing to expand the potential market for fashion retailers who are facing shorter product cycles and margin pressures from fierce competition from South Asia, a key sourcing base for the industry.”
DHL’s fashion & apparel centres of excellence are responsible for developing tailored solutions and providing consultancy services to help customers better manage the product flow further upstream in their supply chain.
