SupplyChain Magazine December 2017 | Page 12

INTERVIEW

us to charge small rates which was crucial to the whole concept working .”
Concept proven , it was in 2014 when Moody and his team realised the scale of demand for affordable delivery . Customers were using the giving marketplace as a means to fulfil their own delivery obligations for items they had sold , going to considerable lengths to play the system .
Following a serious re-think , Sendle was born and quickly dwarfed Moody ’ s initial giving marketplace venture , which consequently closed so he could fully focus on providing affordable delivery services for small Australian businesses .
A numbers game What allows Sendle to undercut the likes of Australia Post so markedly is its leveraging of capacity within existing couriers ’ networks .
“ It is about really deep integration with our partners ,” Moody says . “ In the courier world , it ’ s a volume and numbers game , and it is vital to do things as efficiently as possible . We can offer access to markets and customers by helping with billing , onboarding and the like , and at the same time help to fill their trucks .”
For Sendle ’ s customers , it grants them access to a delivery infrastructure that may previously have been too complex or expensive to exploit . “ We want to level the playing field for business in Australia ,” Moody adds .
“ We are seeing the landscape change hugely , and this will only continue with Amazon arriving . In the short term , it will get many more people buying online and will benefit consumers and small sellers . In the medium to long term , this is where we will see expectations change around delivery time , and we have to make sure we help sellers keep up with those expectations .”
Green growth Sendle , thanks to its innovative business model , is not only the highest-rated delivery service in Australia , but also the first to be carbon neutral .
This was always at the forefront of Moody ’ s mind when establishing the business , and operating in such a way from the outset permitted sustainable , responsible growth . “ You see billion-dollar businesses committing to erasing their carbon
12 December 2017