It is well-known that express logistics and delivery is the most critical link connecting goods and consumers. However, issues such as large-scale warehouse overstocking and excessively long delivery times— which have emerged since the first "Double 11" and are related to various links including warehouse management, trunk and branch line logistics, and last-mile delivery—have long been stubborn problems plaguing both the e-commerce and logistics industries.
JD.com is currently a leading self-operated e-commerce platform in China, with a relatively complete self-built logistics system. According to Fu Bing, Vice President of JD Group and Head of the Logistics Planning and Development Department of JD Mall, during this year’s "Double 11" shopping season, JD.com temporarily launched more than 40 additional trunk lines based on existing routes to accelerate cargo circulation, ensuring transportation efficiency in nearly 100 cities across the country through big data analysis and forecasting. In addition, JD.com also offered overnight door-to-door cargo collection services during "Double 11", with the service time extended to 21:00 in some cities. Currently, the average daily processing capacity of JD.com’s automated sorting equipment nationwide has exceeded one million parcels. The Tongzhou Automated Sorting Center, which has undergone technological upgrades, was officially put into operation in October and can now handle all small and medium-sized orders in Beijing during "Double 11". Furthermore, intelligent robot equipment will be introduced for the first time, and two types of automated facilities—a robot warehouse and a robot sorting center—will be officially activated during "Double 11".
During "Double 11", JD.com’s 3C category warehouses in nine major cities including Beijing and Shanghai will jointly accelerate their operations. Consumers who place orders on the 11th can receive their purchased goods as early as the morning of the same day. In addition, the development of cold chain logistics is also a key project of JD.com this year. "Xindada", in which JD.com has made a strategic investment, will provide over 2.5 million crowdsourced delivery personnel to support JD.com’s logistics and delivery, serving as a supplement to JD.com’s logistics business.
A major highlight of JD.com this year is the application of artificial intelligence (AI) technology in supply chains, warehousing, and delivery. It is reported that following the first delivery by JD.com’s self-developed drones during this year’s "6·18" promotion, JD.com’s unmanned delivery vehicles will conduct their first trial operations for delivery during "Double 11". Both drones and unmanned vehicles will also be showcased during the "Double 11" period.
In addition to the three aforementioned unmanned intelligent products, Ma Song, Vice President of R&D at JD Mall, stated that during "Double 11", JD.com has also implemented a comprehensive intelligent business layout covering smart stores, JIMI (JD’s intelligent customer service), smart marketing, and smart supply chains.
"Overall, consumers’ requirements for the ‘Double 11’ shopping experience will continue to rise, and high-quality shopping will be a major trend in the future online shopping market," Zhao Zhengying told the author. He noted that the initially emerging online shopping market was a typical case of "bad money driving out good money", but as the online shopping market continues to develop, this phenomenon in cities will gradually improve. "At present, the market is in a phase where the ‘bad money driving out good money’ phenomenon is gradually weakening. Consumers are also gradually becoming aware of factors such as service quality, product brands, and product quality in online shopping. If the online shopping experience is poor, in one scenario, consumers will turn to online shopping platforms that ensure product control and offer good service quality; in another scenario, they will return to offline shopping."
He also opined that JD.com’s current proposal of "rational consumption" is a key promotional point for differentiated competition against other e-commerce platforms. Whether JD.com can truly guide consumers to gradually achieve rational consumption through a series of its initiatives will, on the one hand, take time and, on the other hand, require verification by the market.
