Arvato on course for expansion in e-commerce

We are delighted to have found a fulfillment service provider in Arvato that will drive our expansion into Europe with its network and e-commerce expertise," says Kevin Lynch, Business Operations Manager at Doppler Labs. Founded in 2013, the start-up employs more than 70 people and specializes in the development of wireless in-ear earbuds that can dynamically increase and decrease the volume of ambient noise. The here-one earplugs can also be used, for example, to stream music, answer calls and filter out and reduce ambient noise using a connected smartphone app.

Doppler Labs

Doppler Labs was founded in 2013. The company's mission is to make computing more realistic and better tailored to people. After several years of development, the company has launched here one, its first widely available product that uses technology to redefine the way we perceive sound. Here Active Listening, the predecessor to here one, was presented to an exclusive group of early adopters, influencers and partners in January 2016. Doppler Labs is backed by a group of renowned investors in the technology, media and finance sectors. The team of more than 70 employees is based in San Francisco, California, with an office in Shanghai.

"Doppler Labs is a start-up company with potential that we are happy to support in its expansion plans," explains Martijn Nielen, VP Netherlands at Arvato SCM Solutions. Arvato has its own location in Los Gatos in Silicon Valley in order to be able to recognize such developments as early as possible and support them close to the market. "When outsourcing their logistics, the founding companies have long been concerned with more than just warehousing," says Martijn Nielen. "Rather, they expect their partners to provide advice and to be able to cover the entire order-to-cash value chain operationally.

"Our customers can rely on a network that enables rapid access to new markets and supports growth plans with scalable infrastructures."

Martijn Nielen VP Netherlands at Arvato SCM Solutions

Integrated order management system

This allows them to concentrate on their original business and their core competencies." The logistics services for Doppler Labs include complete warehouse management, picking and packing, shipping and customs clearance. For incoming orders, Arvato works together with the online platform Salesupply, whose e-shop solution "Shopify" has an integrated order management system that basically manages all orders generated by Doppler Labs' web store. All information is processed electronically via an SAP Lite solution. "This is ideal for start-up companies like Doppler Labs that are just starting to expand internationally," emphasizes Martijn Nielen. "This gives them the advantage of being able to use a complex system like SAP, in the 'Lite version', at an attractive price. I see very good opportunities for joint growth in the future."

Arvato SCM Solutions

Arvato SCM Solutions is a leading international provider of supply chain management and e-commerce services. In the automotive, banking, insurance, consumer products, healthcare, high-tech, entertainment, publishing and telecommunications sectors, each partner meets its own industry specialist. Over 14,000 employees worldwide provide practical and relevant solutions and services. Using the latest digital technologies, Arvato develops, operates and optimizes complex global supply chains and e-commerce platforms as a strategic growth partner for its customers. Arvato SCM combines the expertise of its employees with the right technologies and appropriate business processes to measurably increase the productivity and performance of its partners. Arvato SCM Solutions is part of the Arvato service company. Around 70,000 Arvato employees in over 40 countries design and create innovative solutions for customers from all over the world and a wide range of business processes. These include customer relationship management, supply chain management, finance and IT solutions as well as digital marketing services. Arvato is a wholly owned subsidiary of Bertelsmann.

This assessment is based not least on the consistent expansion of Arvato SCM Solutions' global network of locations, which currently has 63 sites in 20 countries. As part of the logistics cluster in the Netherlands, for example, a 41,000 square meter warehouse was opened in Venlo this year.

Network for fast access to the market

The multi-user center in Gennep, the Netherlands, which went into operation in 2016, serves as the operational hub for Arvato in the Netherlands. The smart earplugs are also distributed throughout Europe from here as part of Doppler Labs' B2C e-commerce business.

Martijn Nielen: "Our customers can rely on a network that gives them rapid access to new markets and supports their growth plans with scalable infrastructures. This not only guarantees a fast time-to-market, but also a high degree of flexibility, for example to respond to leaps in demand or changes." American companies in particular use the Netherlands as a western gateway to Europe in order to distribute their products in the EMEA region from there with the corresponding market proximity.

www.hereplus.mescm.arvato.com