Creation of the “EC Ecosystem”[PDF:390KB]

DESTINATION OF ONE YAMATO

Creation of the "EC Ecosystem"

The adoption of e-commerce (EC) is accelerating in all industries, to the point where almost everything is available through EC, regardless of the product or service. EC growth through initiatives, such as the expansion of the functions of EAZY, a delivery service for the EC market; support for the creation of a supply chain for EC opera- tors, from receiving orders to shipping and delivery; and the creation of an EC logistics network, will lead to the profit growth of the Yamato Group.

Continued Growth of the EC Market

DESTINATION OF ONE YAMATO

Improvement of Convenience for EC Users

By connecting EC users, EC operators, and delivery service providers in real time using digital information, we will thoroughly enhance the convenience, safety, and efficiency of purchasing, sending, and receiving parcels and help realize sustainable growth in the EC domain.

• Further growth expected domestically as the rate of the shift to EC is comparatively low compared with countries such as the United States and China, despite the continued growth of the EC market
• Further expansion of the EC user base and more established use of EC as a result of changes in lifestyles and consumption behavior due to the COVID-19 pandemic

EAZY-A New Delivery Service for the EC Market

(Launched in June 2020)

Features of

EAZY Delivery Amount

(Thousands of parcels)	435.00 million
500,000
parcels
375,000

Size of the BtoC EC Market in Product Sales Domain and Rate of Shift to EC

(¥ billion)		(%)
18,000			8.08%		9

Percentage of Households Using EC

(%)

60Declaration of first state of emergency in April 2020

1. Responding to diversifying needs for non-face-to-face delivery

• Front door  • Delivery boxes  • Gas meter boxes 

• Storeroom • Garages  • Bicycle baskets 

• Reception / custodian

2. Receiving location can be changed right up until you

250,000		178.83 million
	parcels
125,000

12,000							12,233.3	6
6,000									3
0	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	0

50

40

0

51.8%

2019/1 2019/7 2020/1 2020/7 2021/1 2021/7

	receive parcels
3.	Providing real-time delivery completion notice to
	customers
4.	Collaborating with external partners for more efficient
	deliveries

0	Forecast for scal year
Results for scal year

ended March 31, 2021

ending March 31, 2022*

* Forecast for delivery amount is the figure announced on November 12, 2021

Size of the BtoC EC market in product sales domain 

EAZY will increase convenience for EC users and enhance value provided to EC operators by utilizing digital informa-

Rate of shift to EC (right scale)

Source: Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Market Research on E-commerce

Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Family Income and Expenditure Survey

tion and expanding the functions of the service. For more details, please refer to page 32.

Overview of the EC Ecosystem

Creation of a New "Delivery System" That Connects EC Operators and Consumers

Provision of Added Value for EC Operators

EC operators/sellers

EC Users

We are supporting business growth for EC operators by providing

Large & mid-sized

operators

Promote collaboration with major EC operators Examples of EC sites for introducing EAZY

Trunk-route/terminal functions	Last mile delivery
• Digitalization of upstream processes,	• Delivery combining digital
such as Yamato's trunk-route	technologies with the physical
transportation	network
• Increased visibility of the transportation	• Various ways of receiving parcels
process	• Partnership with delivery compa-
• Use of digital data to achieve various	nies across Japan
production efficiencies

Delivery

notification

Real-time communication with customers and enhanced

total solutions in not only last mile processes but also upstream manufacturing processes, such as the delivery of goods to ware- houses, warehouse operations, and sorting.

Renewal of Fulfillment Service Aimed at Improving Convenience for EC Operators

• ZOZOTOWN
• Amazon
• LOHACO
• PayPay Mall*
• Yahoo! Shopping* * In some stores

Mass retailers

Manufacturers

Direct

delivery/

pickup

Order

placement/

intake/

inventory

data

Terminal	Analyze optimal
means of
	transportation

Automation using robotics Fully digital operation management

Trunk-route

transportation

Optimization and visualization using various types of digital data

Sales drivers Make pickup and delivery tools electric and more lightweight

Delivery

Corporate Individual

Delivery by various carriers

EAZY CREW portal

Operational support tools, enhancement of welfare and other benefits, provision of leased vehicles, etc.

Delivery

Delivery

touchpoints based on customer needs, allowing flexible receipt of parcels

Delivering to desig-

nated locations

Smart locks

Okihai (drop-off delivery at the doorstep, etc.)

Station lockers

From April 2021, Yamato Transport and Yahoo Japan Corporation renewed their fulfillment service, which uses Yamato Group warehouses to carry out a series of operations on behalf of the stores of Yahoo! Shopping and PayPay Mall, from receiving orders for products to their storage and shipping, and have begun to provide nationwide flat rate shipping by size.

Previously, individual estimates had to be provided at the time of contract formation and procedures had to be completed in writing. After the renewal, the service will

be introduced more quickly and be easier to use, thanks to web-based processing and "uniform nationwide shipping rates by size" offered through the cooperation of both companies.

Additionally, because the Yamato Group warehouses enable smooth shipping, the packages will be eligible for "Blue Ribbon Delivery" as defined by Yahoo! Shopping and PayPay Mall, which is expected to improve the probability that the merchants will be selected by users.

Small EC operators

Total

picking

Digital connection		Digital data	Digital connection
with EC users		platform	with EC operators

Convenience stores

Other retailers

(drug stores, etc.)

Fulfillment Service 

The Yamato Group conducts all operations from receiving orders to product storage, picking, packaging, shipping, and delivery.

		Benefits for EC Operators	Benefits for EC Users	Benefits for Delivery Service Providers
				Increased sales opportunities		Real-time communication about deliveries		Ability to forecast business volume (allowing
				Improved customer satisfaction through various		Shorter lead times between order and arrival		resource optimization)
				added value		Wide range of options available for receiving parcels		Robust measures in place
024				Digital communication with clients				Efficient deliveries using operational support tools
YAMATO HOLDINGS CO., LTD.
Integrated Report 2021

Receiving

orders

Yamato Group

Data

Total picking

Billing issuing

Single picking

Packaging

Shipping

download

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Integrated Report 2021

* Applicable services only

DESTINATION OF ONE YAMATO

Creation of the "EC Ecosystem"

Launch of a Digital Return and Shipping Service for EC Operators

DESTINATION OF ONE YAMATO

Creation of Logistics Network

From August 2021, Yamato Transport launched a digital return and shipping service for EC operators, which links the return system provided by Doddle Parcel Services Ltd. and Yamato's delivery network, with the aim of improving convenience for customers returning EC products.

This service simplifies the return process, which traditionally required EC users to make a return request by phone or prepare a return slip, through the digitalization

of the return process and operations and enables the return of products without a return slip from the nearest TA-Q-BIN center, PUDO station, or certain convenience stores. EC operators can improve operational efficiency when processing returns and can easily build a package that includes the creation of a website for accepting returns, reducing initial costs, and enabling them to launch this service quickly.

In order to capture the growing demand for EC and realize profit growth, we are promoting the creation of a specialized EC logistics network, which has a different cost structure from the existing TA-Q-BIN network, in urban areas where demand is focused.

EC Logistics Network

Digital Return and Shipping Service

EC operators			Yamato Transport	Application for return	EC users
				Website for accepting returns	Transmission of
						message with 2D
						barcode attached
			Delivery	Drop-off
				Bases for dropping off products
Logistics warehouse	Pickup	Collection
	EC Operators:	• Easy creation of website for accepting returns, enabling fast, low-cost introduction of service
Benefits		• Reduction in workload, such as operations for accepting returns and printing invoices
	• Ability to complete entire process, from making a return request to sending the product, via smartphone
	EC Users:
	• Ability to select various shipping methods provided by Yamato Transport to fit unique lifestyles
Results of	Launched Gap and Banana Republic official online stores, which are operated by Gap Japan K.K., from August 26, 2021
Introduction

Network

Customer

Sorting and trunk-route transportation

Last mile

Japan

Individual

Sales office

Terminal

Terminal

TA-Q-BIN

Corporate

Across

(shipping

(shipping

(delivery

Sales drivers

network

(Unspecified

store)

base)

base)

number)

Sales office

End user

(delivery

store)

(person

receiving

only

EC operators

parcel)

areas

EC sorting

EC network

(Specialized

EAZY CREW

center

Urban

warehouses)

Provision of Diverse Pickup Experiences for EC Users

EAZY, a delivery service for the EC market, provides pickup experiences outside of the home that fit lifestyles of EC users in addition to the response to okihai (drop-off delivery at the doorstep and other locations) needs. This not only improves convenience for EC users but also contributes to the enhancement of productivity by reducing the frequency of redelivery.

Concept of EC Logistics Network

Creation of Specialized EC Network with Different Cost Structure

• Simplification of operational process
• Efficient sorting and delivery, specializing in EC parcels

Network That Can Flexibly Respond to Fluctuations in Demand

Percentage of Overall Delivery Amount Handled by EC Logistics Network

(expected)

20%

12%

Number of PUDO Station Units Installed/Number of Stores Where Click & Collect Has Been Introduced/Number of Members of Kuroneko Members Service

PUDO Stations (Open-Type Parcel Lockers)

• Open-type parcel lockers that can be designated as

• Deployment of resources in response to customer demand
• Provision of varied delivery costs by strengthening collaboration with partners

As of March 31,	As of March 31,
2022	2024

(Units)					(Thousands of people)
10,000					49,213	50,000
8,000					6,950	40,000
6,000						30,000
4,000						20,000
2,000						10,000
0	2017/3	2018/3	2019/3	2020/3	2021/3	0

Number of PUDO station units installed (left scale) 

Number of stores where Click & Collect has been introduced (left scale)

Number of members of Kuroneko Members service (right scale)

redelivery addresses for parcels and locations for

picking up products purchased through EC sites

• 24-hourTA-Q-BIN pickup and shipping* at the

convenience of EC users

Click & Collect

• Service enabling EC users to pick up products bought on specific EC sites at supermarkets, drugstores, and other places familiar to them in their daily lives
• Initiatives that contribute to increased sales opportuni- ties for pickup stores due to the effect of additional purchases and the attraction of new customers, in addi- tion to enhancing convenience for EC users

EAZY CREW

Number of registered personnel: Approx. 11 thousand  (Approx. 60 thousand sales drivers) Note: As of September 30, 2021

	Sales drivers	EAZY CREW
Type	Employee	Corporate partner
(employment contract)	(outsourcing contract)
Main function	Sales, pickup, delivery, etc.	Specialized EC delivery
Product	All	EAZY
Area covered	Nationwide	Specialized regions
(urban areas)

026	YAMATO HOLDINGS CO., LTD.	YAMATO HOLDINGS CO., LTD.	027
Integrated Report 2021	Integrated Report 2021