Fulfilment company Monta recently opened a warehouse in the UK. The company was already active in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, but this expansion into the UK sees it strengthen its international position within the fulfilment industry.
It has been less than six months since Monta opened a warehouse Belgium, so the company is expanding rapidly; with its next move to the UK, Monta will have increased its number of fulfilment warehouses to 18.
The motivation behind this expansion is threefold, explains Edwin van der Ham (CEO Monta): “First and foremost, we want to help our customers, who are already selling a lot in the UK, to grow further. Since they are already selling a substantial amount of items over there, it is of interest for them to experience the benefits of local stock – not only financially, but also in terms of the considerably shorter delivery times, which benefit customer satisfaction. The UK warehouse is located in Coventry, right at the heart of the country. This means we can offer a late cut-off time and deliver throughout the country the following day. Collaborations with multiple carriers also contribute to this. In addition, the customs clearance process is simplified and returns can be handled faster.”
Alongside Monta’s existing customers, the company will be focusing on online entrepreneurs from the UK: Monta’s first UK customer is already live. Van der Ham: “Not only that, but Monta can also act as a European hub for webshops in the UK: The 17 warehouses within the various European countries where Monta is located are a strategic option for online entrepreneurs from the UK who want to (continue to) grow within Europe. Actually, we are already helping several webshops outside the EU in this way, but our recent expansion to the UK will increase the focus on this.”
Following Brexit, the e-commerce market in the UK has undergone significant changes. For example, the new trade agreement between the UK and the EU has led to changes in VAT and customs regulations. For e-commerce companies, this means they now face more complex procedures for importing and exporting goods. Van der Ham: “When UK webshops make use of our fulfilment services within one of our European Monta warehouses, they naturally have easier access to the European market and vice versa. When a webshop is able to provide us with the correct product information, we are able to import items easily and quickly. This is due to the knowledge and tools we have at our disposal. It feels good to be able to continuously support webshops within the challenging e-commerce industry and help them grow, regardless of changing regulations and market conditions. We are growing with our customers, both within and beyond the Dutch border. And more countries are in the pipeline; we are far from finished.”
