Logistics startup, Wherehouse, launches 12-hr fulfilment services 

Supply chain platform, Wherehouse, has launched its 12-hour fulfilment service to the direct-to-consumer brands and is planning to set up more than 2,500 warehouses across 20 cities of India . The startup said that it is going live with the 12-hour fulfilment services in Delhi, NCR and will soon expand to Bengaluru and Mumbai. The announcement comes at a time when D2C market in India is at an inflection point with increased competition when it comes to fulfilment and delivery capabilities, thus paving a way for a huge market penetration by the logistics platforms.
 
Wherehouse said that it has used its latest round of funding to expand its platform with more than 2,500 warehouses in 20 plus cities and has seen a strong response coming from Tier-2 cities and growth of 5X in order volumes during the festive season. The Delhi-based start-up recently had raised seed-funding from Better Capital, Java Capital, Titan Capital (Snapdeal founders), First Cheque, and Upsparks.
 
Vaibhav Chawla, co-founder of Wherehouse, said that In today’s competitive business landscape, speed is of essence. D2C brands are striving to offer their customers a superlative experience.
 
“To deliver 12-hour fulfilment services, we have set up a network of hybrid warehouses closer to the customer clusters. We are using proprietary distribution engine to effectively utilise this network of warehouses to deliver faster. The layer of technology allows Wherehouse to keep on optimising inventory mapping and distribution and bring the fulfilment cost under control allowing brands to have much healthier gross margins while delivering faster. The approach is much different from conventional hub-spoke or dark store models,” Chawla added.
 
The business model of Wherehouse revolves around placing inventories across a wide network of flexible warehouses and offering last-mile connectivity to deliver their products to customers in the shortest possible time. “Driven by proprietary technology, the warehouses allow superior quality control and operational procedures that make the experience more personal and delightful for the brands and their end customers. The growth infrastructure scales with the growth of brands and allows them to optimize the efficiency of their supply chain while delivering a superior customer experience with a presence near the customer clusters,” according to a company statement.