Economic survey
Fee reduction and fines become the last straw to crush the grassroots express delivery points?
At the moment, Liu Xizu is facing a fine of nearly 300,000 yuan, 20 employees who have been suspended from work, and the courier that has not been delivered in the trunk of the car, helpless, "I pushed you into the middle of the lake, do you want to turn back?"
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Liu Xizu, a contractor of express delivery outlets in Nanning, Guangxi, did not expect that the 90,000 packages he and his employees sent out in the first 20 days of November this year not only failed to bring them the expected income, but were also fined by the company. There is not much left.
Counting the newly received October bill, he has been fined nearly 300,000 yuan by the company headquarters since 2020.
What was even more unexpected to Liu Xizu was that he had already planned to close the outlets and lay off employees. However, on November 25, the Nanning Postal Administration told him by phone that even if the work numbers of all employees at the outlets had been cancelled, he Hundreds of goods from the processing center still need to be transferred to every customer.
The experience of Liu Xizu is not an isolated case.
With the annual "Double 11" turnover rising, the express delivery industry has become a "franchise" in the eyes of many people. Being a member of franchisees means that you will become an important force in the express delivery network extending in all directions.
However, the reality is that the fierce competition among express companies such as "Four Links and One Access" (YTO, Shentong, Zhongtong, Best Huitong, Yunda) is becoming the last straw that crushes many grassroots business outlets.
According to media reports, the five express delivery companies of "Four Links and One Delivery" have all experienced an increase in abnormal outlets this year. The operations of these outlets involve multiple provinces and regions, and the situations are mostly marked as “abnormal outlets”, “severe express backlog”, and “unmanned delivery”. Wait.
How many tickets are there?
In 2017, Liu Xizu was still a salesman under a three-level branch. Seeing the express delivery market is booming, he and his wife spent 230,000 yuan to join the Santang branch of the Shengtian Service Department of Yunda Express Nanning City Company.
Deposit, name change fee, venue rent, vehicle purchase fee...This is the cost that Liu Xizu needs to invest in joining the network, and his biggest income comes from the collection fee and the delivery fee, of which the delivery fee accounts for the bulk.
When it first took over the Santang branch, Yunda's headquarters promised a delivery fee of 1.3 yuan per order, and there was an additional bulk charge for goods over 3 kg.
At the beginning of this year, it dropped to about 1.1 yuan per order, and the bulk cargo fee was cancelled.
This means that now he can only get a delivery fee of 1.1 yuan/piece no matter how many items he sends.
Liu Xizu frankly said that the distribution fee before this year can be reduced to a profit margin of at least a dime per order. Now the profit margin is completely reduced.
According to the billing form of the branch in October this year, the Santang branch where Liu Xizu was located received a fine of nearly 60,000 yuan.
Among them, the “upgrade warning” fine of 3000 yuan is the largest amount involved.
Liu Xizu’s wife explained that the “escalation warning” means that the customer intended to complain to the postal administration, but was intercepted by the express company.
The shop that was fined had already lost money to the customer, but the company still came with a fine.
"As long as consumers check on the official website, we will be fined, or if people complain, we will have to be fined before we have time to negotiate." Liu Xizu said that some express delivery is empty parcels sent online by swiping orders, only a dozen grams. If the warehouse is accidentally lost, you will not only lose money to consumers, but also be fined by the company.
"As long as we make 1% or even 0.1% mistakes, one day will be for nothing."
As early as this year’s “Double 11”, the Santang branch had repeatedly reported abnormal situations to the headquarters. The branch was short of staff and suffered serious losses, and could not cope with the continuous incoming goods.
At the moment, Liu Xizu is facing a fine of nearly 300,000 yuan, 20 employees who have been suspended from work, and the courier that has not been delivered in the trunk of the car, helpless, "I pushed you into the middle of the lake, do you want to turn back?"
Like Liu Xizu, the father and son Huang Qian (pseudonym) who joined the outlets with the expectation of "the express industry will make money" are also facing similar experiences.
The second-level branch in Nanning that he contracted has actually changed hands three or four times this year, and the last boss was fined 180,000 yuan a month.
And he also lost more than 200,000 yuan in the first month of joining.
Best Express and Zhongtong Express also have outlets that are "living."
A branch contractor, who did not want to be named, said that his Zhongtong counterparts are still "supporting" and expecting new contractors to "take over".
Not long ago, a Nanning netizen said that the items they bought online stayed in the second section of Best Express Express for too long, and the store replied that “the branch seems to have a problem with the operating conditions”.
The reporter went to the registered address and found that the store had closed, and the two office telephones on the company's official website indicated that it was down.
"Price wars have brought the express delivery industry to the limit of bearability"
Beginning in May 2019, the first round of industry price wars triggered by SF Express’s first price cuts has not yet subsided. Since February this year, due to the free tolls of national highways and the drop in oil prices, the cost of express delivery has further dropped. In order to compete for the market, express companies have Set off a more intense price war.
Increasingly fierce price wars are squeezing the profit margins of secondary franchisees and couriers step by step.
According to data compiled by the Industrial Securities Research Institute of Economics and Finance, in 2019, the four companies Yunda, Yuantong, Shentong, and Best Huitong received 1.55 yuan, 1.30 yuan, 1.71 yuan and 1.52 yuan respectively, and the dispatch fee cost was 1.73 yuan. Yuan, 1.31 Yuan, 1.69 Yuan and 1.52 Yuan, the income and cost are basically the same.
Entering the first quarter of 2020, the delivery fee income has fallen to 1.40 yuan, 1.10 yuan, 1.43 yuan and 1.27 yuan, while the delivery fee cost is 1.50 yuan, 1.21 yuan, 1.47 yuan and 1.27 yuan.
Although the price war has allowed some express companies to retain market share and even increase revenue data, their profitability is not optimistic.
The three quarterly reports disclosed by a number of listed express delivery companies show that in the first three quarters of 2020, SF Holdings, YTO Express, Yunda shares, and Shentong Express achieved revenues of 109.594 billion yuan, 23.420 billion yuan, 23.87 billion yuan, and 14.712 billion yuan, respectively. They were 39.13%, 8.34%, -4.81%, -6.03%, respectively.
In terms of net profit, only SF Holdings and YTO Express achieved positive growth in net profit. Yunda and Shentong Express fell by double digits, respectively -47.83% and -99.53%.
Among the domestic private express delivery companies, except for SF Express, which adopts the direct operation model, all other companies adopt a franchise-based approach to establish an express network.
The headquarters has the right to price and management, and the first-level agency outlets have the right to subcontract and fine the outlets within their jurisdiction.
Increasingly intensified price wars have put pressure on the profitability of major express companies, and this pressure will be transmitted layer by layer to grassroots outlets and couriers.
The reporter interviewed a number of express delivery outlets in Nanning and learned that the company has a wide variety of fines.
The number of orders sent on "Double 11" has risen sharply. It was a good thing for grassroots outlets and salespersons to increase their income. However, the influx of orders often results in poor delivery by couriers, and the accumulation of orders will cause customers to complain to the company.
After receiving the complaint, the company forced the courier to deliver more deliveries, and fined them if they failed to complete the delivery.
Strict management and punishment systems have made many express outlets and couriers overwhelmed, and they are busy but fail to get corresponding returns.
Huang Qian’s son graduated from university this year and did not find a suitable job. He wanted to follow his father to run an outlet and earn the first pot of gold. He didn’t expect that as newcomers, Huang Qian and his son would not have time to figure out the actual situation. "Now it’s difficult to eat."
Lai Meisong, founder of Zhongtong Express, said in an interview with the media that from the perspective of cash flow, the price war is coming to an end, and the industry has reached the limit of bearability because everyone wants to make a profit.
The franchise system requires the headquarters to protect the franchisees in order to ensure the normal operation of the delivery and receipt of the last mile.
The Post Office stated that it cannot blindly use administrative means to interfere with market competition
Regarding Liu Xizu, the person in charge of the Santang Sales Department of Guangxi Hengyun Yunda Express Co., Ltd., reported that enterprise fines, arbitrary deductions, and enterprises’ “price war” contradictions were transferred to the grass-roots outlets, Nanning Post Administration (hereinafter referred to as “Nanning Post Administration”) Bureau”) said in a written reply to a reporter from China Youth Daily and China Youth Daily that the express delivery industry is a purely market-competitive industry. As a prefecture-level supervisory authority, the bureau cannot blindly use administrative means to interfere with market competition, let alone distort the market. Leading role in resource allocation.
According to Article 4 of the "Regulations on the Administration of Commercial Franchising," the principles of voluntariness, fairness, and city credit should be followed when engaging in franchising activities.
Article 6 of the Price Law stipulates that commodity prices and service prices shall be subject to market-adjusted prices in addition to government-guided prices or government-set prices in accordance with the provisions of Article 18 of this Law, which shall be independently set by operators in accordance with this Law.
Nanning Post Management Bureau stated that under the conditions of a market economy, the operating conditions of express delivery outlets are affected by various factors such as subjective and objective factors. The express delivery prices are also regulated by the market rather than government intervention. If there are issues related to charges, it is recommended to contact the competent pricing authority understand situation.
In order to promote the stable development of grass-roots express delivery outlets, Nanning Post Management Bureau, in accordance with the spirit of the State Post Bureau’s "Emergency Notice on Effectively Doing a Good Job in the Stable Operation of Primary Express Delivery Branches", has adopted the principle of consolidating the main responsibilities of express delivery enterprises of the Guangxi brand headquarters, and urged enterprises to pay great attention For the stability of terminal outlets, we will seriously handle business settlement and economic relations between outlets; supervise and urge the express companies of the brand headquarters in Guangxi to establish emergency plans. In the event of instability at the terminal outlets, ensure that measures can be taken as required by the plan to promote the stability of primary express outlets.
In addition, around the problems of long distances, low business volume, and high operating costs at the end points of counties and townships, the Post Office proposed to guide enterprises to innovate and carry out "fast and fast cooperation", continue to promote "post and express cooperation", and adopt group heating and transportation resources. The sharing method helps companies reduce costs and achieve a win-win situation.
At present, Liu Xizu has reported the situation to the postal administration, labor arbitration department and other relevant departments, and sought solutions through lawyers.
He said that the branch business has been directly delivered by the higher-level distribution center, and he only hopes to get back the fined money and pay the salesman the wages he owes.
However, Liu Xizu’s wife received an inquiry call from the company’s headquarters on December 3. She didn’t understand why her outlets were shut down, her account number was suspended, and she had to report the tracking of the express delivery. She was annoyed by the phone. "Vent out all the grievances of the past ten days."
In contrast, Huang Qian and his son were silent a lot. "We contacted the lawyer." The father and son continued to deliver the goods while waiting for a new contractor.
Regarding the branch that had just taken over for two months, he expressed helplessness, "We just started and don't know anything yet."
China Youth Daily·China Youth Daily reporter Xie Yang Source: China Youth Daily