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Boosting Sales in an After-Market A cold chain solutions provider has to be quite proactive. The overall systems and processes must be quite adaptive to meet changing expectations of customers. In fact, cold chain operators must be one step ahead, in designing solutions that fits into the future requirements of their customers. It is important to note that demand is increasing and will increase irrespective of the challenges that this country has. Most of the technology are standard and costs are regulated, thus, with all efficiencies, the overall costs are going to be same across operators. The solution providers can only make a difference in solution designing, quality, service and the network. Mohanta shares, “Under current market scenario, the distributors have to maintain the supply line to boost sales. Stock-outs are a major challenge in cold chain products. However, they have to also manage their stock turnover to maintain margins and working capital. They also need to communicate and demonstrate on the benefits of the cold chain products. Consumer’s acceptance of a ‘brand’ is better than a ‘commodity’. Retailers must create product visibility so as to improve sales, as more visibility creates more sales.” Dadala says, “Distributors of cold chain solutions can impact their sales through their good infra projections, performance in timely deliveries, tech back-up during inventory storage and delivery tracking.” “Cold chain customers are a repeat business, with trust and SOP process improved over-time and comfort levels set in both sides,” claims Dadala. “Although business is touring through difficult times in the current market scenario, demand is growing day by day and there is still scope in the space which we have demonstrated through our growth story,” says Singh. “Our newly built, state-of-the-art reefer fleet- Mr Kool had started operations with 8 vehicles in March 2015 and now
we have 250+ company-owned reefer vehicles. We are also setting up cold storages with 7,000 MT capacities at Gurgaon and Ghaziabad, while another 30,000 MT is in the pipeline for the next financial year. We are committed to take the number of vehicles to 500 and ColdStorage with more than 1,00,000 MT capacity in next 2-3 years,” states Singh.
Government is giving a lot of attention to promote cold chain in India through MOFPI, NCCD, Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Agriculture. The recent infrastructure status attributed to logistics industry will also help adding impetus to the growth of this industry. B Sumit Kumar CEO, TCI Cold Chain Solutions Ltd
It is incumbent on distributors of cold chain solutions to ensure reliable services – which translate to faster transit times, maximum visibility of shipment and on-time delivery in the case of transport providers – to their customers.
Here, Hussain stresses on the need to focus on end markets as well as onroad solutions; end-to-end solutions which is a potential area for sales; creating awareness about the benefits of cold chain solutions; and that distributors need to reach out to small holding farms and create a common solution for the farmers and also handle their transportation to ensure higher sales for the companies, as well as better quality of produce for the farmers. “To boost sales, distributors of cold chain solutions need to help their customers increase their sales,” asserts D’Costa. He says, “Presently, cold chain logistics in India is a highly fragmented industry with more than 3,500 players. Despite the potential of this segment, poor technology adoption is hampering the reliability and security that is required for businesses to be able to depend on their logistics partners. Companies today are increasingly relying upon supply chain components, such as logistics, to deliver greater value and provide vital competitive advantage. It is, therefore, incumbent on distributors of cold chain solutions to ensure reliable services – which translate to faster transit times, maximum visibility of shipment and ontime delivery in the case of transport providers – to their customers.” april 2019 - CargoConnect
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