We offer single window platform for integrated logistics: Zipaworld

While the whole world is cursing Covid-19, few people have kickstarted new avenues of entrepreneurship during the pandemic period. A Noida-based businessman got an idea to bring an online platform as a single source for the customers to choose and book one or multiple logistics services.

In an exclusive interview with Bizz Buzz, Dr Ambrish Kumar, Founder of Zipaworld and Group CEO of AAA2 Innovate Pvt Ltd shared his plans to pickup and deliver anything from/ to anywhere across the world. He is not just focusing on a particular segment of logistics and supply chain, but he is in a sprint to integrate the whole supply chain.

How was Zipaworld founded amid the pandemic period?

Zipaworld was launched during the pandemic last September, by the parent company AAA2 Innovate Pvt Ltd, which was established three months ago in the same year. This happened to be a time when the need of the hour of most businesses was to keep its people safe at home yet ensure business continuity for survival.

The logistics, transportation and freight forwarding companies were among those affected due to the scenario, as almost 85 per cent of the logistics sector in India is unorganised and disintegrated. Only 15 per cent of the players have their processes digitised through enterprise resource planning (ERP) which include mostly MNCs and big Indian enterprises.

Hence, we found the situation as an opportunity more than a challenge. Since we already had the concept of a fully digital logistics platform in place, we managed to develop the portal in a record time of three months. We started with an automated process for air freight in September 2020 that received a great deal of acceptance by the trade players.

Using the portal, the customers were able to check air freight pricing online, book their shipments, get freight documentation done online, get instant invoices, and make their payments. We could see a lot of pharma manufacturers and traders come on-board the portal for carrying out their freight forwarding and logistics tasks.

There were several small and medium freight forwarding enterprises also who benefited from the fully automated portal as they were able to get their work done despite working from home. Hence, we can state that the Zipaworld portal is a foil to the pandemic situation and was made to operate in such situations.

The pandemic situation and its aftermath made the logistics costs increase substantially. Zipaworld is playing a significant part in reducing the logistics costs with a single window platform to avail all logistics services within the sphere of air, ocean, road and inland freight, thereby negating multiple vendor costs and commissions. This is a time when cost-efficiency is a major factor for all businesses.

After the recent tie ups with ASYAD Group and Radiant X Ways, are you planning to acquire any new company in India or abroad during this fiscal year?

We have already tied up with ASYAD Express of Oman for international courier and door-to-door services for which our Indian partners like Radiant X-ways Logistic are assisting with the vast Indian network. We are currently looking forward to capitalising on the existing pack of our partners and associates to achieve the aim of connecting the various zip codes of the world.

The most recent venture happens to be our quest into the domestic courier services segment that is launched in our newly designed portal that has air, ocean and road freight along with courier bookings. Zipaworld has been catering to the B2B segments and now has entered the B2C segment catering to households with the courier services.

Currently, Zipaworld caters to more than 15,000 pin codes across India. There is a unique concept of home pick-up option from 2,000 pin codes. We believe if courier can be delivered to doors, then pick-up from doors only requires the right coordination and integration in place. In such times when it is safest to be at home, moving out to send your documents or parcels looks like an old-hat concept.

With a platform that is already coded to integrate anything, we have kickstarted this concept. The idea is not just to cater to the domestic courier market, but also to integrate with international zip codes. Anyone and everyone will be able to access the platform and book their logistic requisites as per their requirement. We are open to technological integration in the future as well.

Do you have your own fleet of vehicles for delivery or you partnered with other logistics players in the market? Throw some light on your modus operandi?

We have partnered with various vendors across air, ocean and road carriers. We do not have our own fleet of vehicles, but with a vast network of our associates across the world, we are able to cater to the first, middle and last mile connectivity seamlessly. Margin levels and commissions have been kept on the lower side as the bigger aim is to cater with a competitive and reliable gateway for the service seekers.

The user feeds some basic details of the cargo like origin, destination, date of materialisation, number of packages, weight, dimensions and commodity type. The customer can view instant live market pricing options with options to view cost break-up. The customer may choose any option based on service levels and cost and proceed with e-booking of the consignment.

Upon booking, the airway bill, bill of lading or other freight documents get automatically created after which payment can be made online. The freight costs are retrieved real-time from the contracted vendors and carriers which lead to competitive results. The revenue comes from the incentives, performance-linked bonuses and volume-based contracts and commitments with vendors and carriers.

What is the overall team size and vendor network in India and abroad? In which cities/ countries are you currently operating at present? Let us know about your further expansion plans.

We commenced the start-up with a team of six people working from home during the pandemic. However, the team has grown in the past months and we have more than 35 personnel working in different areas of work in our corporate office in Noida. We have members still working from home, while the office is open and flexible to be used by our team as and whenever they feel like.

As Zipaworld is a digital platform, the best thing about it is that the whole process is centralised. We can control the whole logistics process from one location and our hub is Delhi NCR. However, we have our presence in the form of our associate partners, sister concern companies, and vendors in all major cities across India and even globally. Our partner associates together cover more than 40 locations spread across 25 states in India. Through our network, we are easily able to carry out the operational tasks involved in freight forwarding and other logistics requisites. Since every aspect is digitally accounted for in the Zipaworld portal, we believe in organic growth.

Are you in talks with any investor to fund your company? At what stage is the discussion? What is the overall requirement for your growth strategy?

We are currently focussed on tying the loose ends of the supply chain and in the process of integrating multimodal logistics into one portal. We are on our way to making Zipaworld a one stop solution for all logistics services. We are looking forward to developing a full-fledged logistics platform. We are waiting for the right time for pitching for any kind of funding and investment.