Background to the founding of Live Commerce Logi

Live Commerce Logi is a service that separates the "overseas logistics" function required for the cross-border EC business provided by Digital Studio Co., Ltd.

The starting point of the overseas logistics business - Overseas logistics started from home

Overseas logistics started from home

Nice to meet you, I'm Itabashi from Digital Studio Co., Ltd.
This photo was taken when my wife and I were doing overseas shipments at my house. It's time to have your package ready at your doorstep before FedEx and DHL pick it up. (Currently working in a distribution warehouse)

We were packing 50 to 100 pieces per day.
My wife was in charge of packing, and I was in charge of making the documents for Fedex and DHL.

My wife and I were busy packing and shipping from the time we woke up until the time we went to bed, except for eating.

At first, the number of orders increased and we were pleased with each other. However, it was only a few days, and if it lasted for almost a week, I would have to repeat packing and paperwork except for the basic necessities of life.

I'm getting mentally ill.
Conversation naturally disappeared. The only thing between them is the sound of the printer making the FedEx invoices, the sound of the tapes when packing, and otherwise they are working in silence.

At that time, I was working hard in the middle of Golden Week. I want to feel better soon.

It was a tough time both physically and mentally, but I learned the necessary know-how for overseas delivery, such as how to write product names on invoices and assign HS codes. My wife is now able to work in a short time while maintaining the quality of the packing time.
Of course, this situation cannot continue forever, so I began to feel the need for a distribution warehouse.

At some point, we stopped logistics at home, set up a logistics center near our office, hired people, and prepared equipment.

Below are some photos from the initial launch.

We also built a break room.

The road to commercialization

Speaking of sending something overseas, there is a delivery service called EMS of the post office.
However, if you send a large amount of items overseas like we do, the shipping cost is very important. If you have 10 items, it's fine, but if you have 1000 items, the difference in shipping costs of 100 yen will be a big cost throughout the year.
Therefore, we considered options other than EMS, and have also signed contracts with Fedex and DHL.

We have developed software that can automatically output EMS, DHL, and Fedex invoices from our e-commerce order management screen. Now, operators can almost automate overseas shipping, collection, and notification of tracking numbers with simple procedures. Using a thermal printer, we have now made it possible to output invoices in bulk even for mass distribution.

I think there are many young people who start IT services, but I don't think there are any people who start a logistics business. Thinking about it now, the logistics business is an extension of the e-commerce business, and we launched it because there was no logistics service that suited us in the world.