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Captive platform logistics
What it is
E-commerce and quick-commerce platforms building their own delivery fleets and fulfilment networks rather than using third-party logistics providers
It removes the platform's largest variable cost from an external supplier's control
Impact on industries
- Removes the largest and fastest-growing volume pool from third-party providers, and the customers lost are the ones with the most volume
- Gives platforms a credible in-house alternative in every rate negotiation, capping what external providers can charge
- Captive networks are costly to build and operate at national scale, so platforms typically retain third parties for lower-density and non-core geographies
- The equilibrium settles by density - platforms insource dense urban routes and outsource the long tail, so third parties inherit the costlier half