The shippers' logistics mix : a comparative analysis of large 3PLs post-mergers and acquisitions, and partnerships of small and mid-sized 3PLs

Abstract

The worldwide trade is growing quickly, and manufacturers are producing and selling in many countries. The logistics industry is one of the critical elements of these international exchanges, because its efficiency can influence dramatically the performances of the buying/selling of goods. Indeed, to successfully run their business at an international level, shippers need a strong help from their Third Party Logistics providers. To answer to those needs, most of the logistics services providers have pursued mergers and acquisitions to build rapidly global and integrated networks. The author's assumption is that shippers do not necessarily want to deal with the very large firms which have resulted from several Mergers and Acquisitions. Therefore, this dissertation investigates the pertinence of the increasing use of this strategy, suggesting the partnerships between Small and Mid-Sized Third Party Logistics as an alternative.

The results of this research have demonstrated that shippers use the services of large logistics services providers, because a bigger scale gives to these logistics' multinationals some advantages compare to smaller logistics services provider. However, shippers are not necessarily using these large players as a single supplier despite the promises of the logistics firms which propose this solution. Indeed, the small and mid-sized players remain attractive thanks to some features generalists cannot meet. Therefore, the common Shippers Logistics' Mix (SLM) includes several categories of Third Party Logistics to cover different areas, and to meet different needs.