Market Trends of Russia 3PL Industry
This section covers the major market trends shaping the Russia 3PL Market according to our research experts:
The Rise in the E-Commerce Sector
Russia is the twelfth largest market for eCommerce in 2021. In the Russian eCommerce market, the number of users is expected to amount to 75.4m users by 2027 and the user penetration will be 47.3% by 2023 end and is expected to hit 52.2% by 2027, according to Statista.
The Russian e-commerce companies are expanding aggressively, in terms of warehousing space and collaborations with logistics companies for faster deliveries of goods. The Belgian logistics provider Ahlers opened a warehouse in Orientir Park in Moscow region, Russia. Orientir and Ahlers concluded a deal to lease 10,000 sq m of warehouse space and 700 sq m of office space in Orientir North-4. Ahlers said this is an important milestone for the company to further develop its business in the Moscow region, centralizing services for its customers, whilst improving quality and speed in today's growing e-commerce market in Russia.
The coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in 2020 caught off guard most industries, not only in Russia but all over the world. E-commerce, on the other hand, was among the few industries that benefited from the global pandemic to some extent. Namely, the Russian e-commerce market, which has been transitioning from slow to accelerated development in the past decade, is projected to experience enhanced growth over the post-pandemic period. Online orders made from the capital Moscow accounted for more than one-third of the total orders placed in Russia during the pandemic.
The unrelenting growth of e-commerce is fundamentally changing the third-party logistics (3PL) landscape. To stay competitive and meet increasing consumer expectations for on-time and accurate deliveries, more e-commerce retailers are outsourcing mission-critical components of their distribution and fulfillment operations to 3PL partners. Thus, 3PL is also increasing with the growth of e-commerce.
Increasing Storage Infrastructure Demand is Driving the Market
To fulfill the ever-increasing demand for storage space by the manufacturing, retail, e-commerce, and logistics companies, the underdeveloped warehousing market in Russia is now, under development. Backed by government initiatives, private investments, and FDI in the country, the warehousing space is expected to increase significantly during the forecast period. In the year 2020, FM Logistics opened the second stage of its warehouse in the Noginskdistrict, near Moscow, Russia offering 12,500 sq. meters of additional space, bringing the facility's total surface to 66,000 sq. meters and its storage capacity to 85,000 pallet spaces. In December 2021, Tablogix has announced the closing of the acquisition of 100% of Itella Logistics' warehousing and transportation business in Moscow and the Moscow region. Tablogix has acquired over 180,000 sq m of Itella's warehousing facilities located in Krekshino (60,000 sq m), Odintsovo (40,000 sq m), and Khimki (80,000 sq m). As a result of the deal, the total warehousing facilities of Tablogix now make some 400,000 sq m making the company the second largest player in the Russian warehousing market.
Along with the growth in the general warehousing space, the development of cold storage facilities is also speeding up. In October, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Maersk launched the construction of its new cold storage facility in St. Petersburg to address the needs of increasing demand of the Russian market that will be focusing on offering specialized solutions extending the life cycle of perishable goods.
The warehousing service as compared to the transport service is relatively underdeveloped and is currently under development. Simple logistic operations like transportation and freight forwarding by all modes of transport are developing dynamically in Russia as compared to complex logistics services like end-to-end integration and supply chain management. As of the first half of 2021, Moscow had the highest number of warehouses of fulfillment operators in Russia, with 65 properties. Next was Saint Petersburg, where 33 fulfillment warehouses were located. Vacancy rates in St. Petersburg are some of the lowest in Europe. The demand for modern large-scale logistics facilities has been increasing and expanding in recent years in Russia.
