UPS is cultivating its shipping capabilities for integrated international ecommerce through a partnership with ESW. The agreement between the shipping-and-logistics company and DTC ecommerce firm will aim to facilitate cross-border online business for brands seeking to reach consumers on a global scale. Consumers will experience a more localized ecommerce shopping experience from brands that use ESW through ease of delivery with the UPS global transportation and customs brokerage platform.
“The ability to get a one-stop solution that combines ESW’s technology and deep localization expertise with UPS’ expansive logistics and transportation network will give DTC retailers of any size greater access to consumers on a global scale,” said Patrick Bousquet-Chavanne, President and CEO of the Americas for ESW in a statement. “This agreement leverages our entire logistics and payments ecosystem as well as UPS’ extensive global transportation network to remove barriers and alleviate the friction that often impedes brands and retailers from selling directly to consumers regardless of where they live in the world.”
According to ESW’s Global Voices 2022 survey, which gauged trends among 14,000 consumers in 14 countries, cross-border DTC business increased among every age group between December 2022 and July 2021. Despite the rise in cross-border shopping trends, the survey also found that 27% of shoppers were dissuaded from these purchases due to longer shipping times and 27% were deterred due to transit costs of making purchases with international vendors.
Expanding its global strategy into easing the shipping challenges of the DTC market is a smart move for UPS, which has also grown its local same-day delivery service through the acquisition of Roadie amid competition from emerging logistics services such as Uber Freight, which acquired Transplace in July 2021. With enormous growth in cross-border ecommerce sales to $3.2 trillion in 2021, according to the report Cross-Border Commerce: How Retailers Can Tap Fast-Growing Markets with the Right Partnerships by Retail TouchPoints, retailers must be prepared to progress with advancements in global shipping and logistics.
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“UPS continues to innovate on behalf of customers, offering new capabilities to grow their businesses,” said Bill Seward, UPS President of the Americas Region and Global Customer Solutions in a statement. “This alliance with ESW offers UPS ecommerce customers the ability to sell and ship seamlessly around the world, with the confidence that they are delivering a great shopping experience.”