What Will Affect the Logistics Cost of General Merchandise Products

Ⅰ. Competitive factors affecting logistics costs of general merchandise products

Market environment of enterprise is full of competition, and the competition between enterprises includes price, performance, quality of products. In a sense, the high-quality customer service is the key to the success or failure of the competition, and the customer service directly decides the discretion of logistics costs, so it is largely due to the increasingly fierce competition that the logistics cost is constantly changing. Here are the following influencing factors.

(1) Ordering cycle. The high efficiency of logistics system of enterprise general merchandise products can shorten the ordering cycle of enterprises and reduce the inventory of customers, thus reducing the inventory cost of customers and improving the customer service of enterprises and the competitiveness of enterprises.

(2) Inventory level. The increase of inventory cost can reduce the out-of-stock cost, that is, the out-of-stock cost is inversely proportional to inventory cost. Inventory level is too low, which will lead to an increase in out-of-stock costs. However, if the inventory level is too high, the inventory cost will increase significantly, but the out-of-stock cost will be reduced. Therefore, reasonable inventory should be maintained at a level that minimizes total costs.

(3) Transportation. Different means of transport vary in capacity and cost. Choice of means of transport depends on the volume, weight and value of the goods shipped, and on the other hand, it depends on the degree of demand and technological requirements of the enterprise for certain goods.

Ⅱ. Product factors affecting logistics costs of general merchandise products

Different characteristics of products will also affect logistics costs, mainly including:

(1) Product value

Generally speaking, the greater the value of general merchandise products, the higher the requirements for the means of transportation it needs to use, and the storage and inventory costs also increase with the increase of the value of the product. High value means high costs in inventory and increased packaging costs.

(2) Product density

The denser the product, the more cargo the same unit can carry, and the lower the cost of transportation. Similarly, the more goods are stored in a certain space in the warehouse, the lower the inventory cost is.

(3) vulnerability

The impact of the vulnerability of general merchandise products on logistics costs is obvious. Vulnerable products put forward higher requirements for all aspects of logistics, such as transportation, packaging, storage, etc. High-quality products can eliminate all kinds of logistics costs due to defective products, waste and other recovery or return.

(4) Special handling

Some items have special requirements for handling. For example, the handling of large items needs special loading tools. Some items need to be heated or cooled in the process of handling, which will increase logistics costs.

Ⅲ. Spatial factors

The spatial factor refers to the location relation of manufacturing center or warehouse relative to target market or supplier in logistics system. Purchase direction determines the distance of enterprise cargo transportation, but also affects the choice of means of transport, purchase volume and other aspects. If the enterprise is too far away from the target market, it will inevitably increase the cost of transportation and packaging of general merchandise products. If the warehouse is established or rented in the target market, it will also increase the inventory cost, so the spatial factor has a great impact on the logistics cost.