Arena is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of swimwear and swimming accessories. The owner-managed company has recently started using a central fulfillment system from which it supplies the whole of Europe. For European countries with customs borders, Arena relies on MS Direct’s comprehensive cross-border solution, enabling it to seamlessly reach customers in Switzerland and the UK.
The Arena brand was founded in 1972 by sports visionary and son of Adidas founder Horst Dassler. Just one year later, the company launched its first competition collection for the Olympic Games. Over the years, Arena expanded its product range and won several medals and world records with its own team of athletes. As part of New Balance, the brand is now the fourth-largest sporting goods manufacturer in the world and is still the only owner-managed brand among the global players.
The challenge.
Arena aims to strengthen its brand presence with a clear growth strategy in e-commerce. Direct sales to end customers (D2C) and an optimal customer experience play a particularly important role in this. For this reason, Arena was looking for an experienced partner with a central fulfillment location and automated processes. The brand found what it was looking for at Versandmanufaktur GmbH which has been handling shipments within the EU ever since.
In order to be able to reach customers in the customs countries of Switzerland and the UK, Arena was looking for a cross-border partner that was compatible with its EU fulfillment solution and could guarantee fast and customer-friendly shipping across the customs border. The sporting goods retailer was looking for an end-to-end solution that would cover everything from goods collection, customs clearance and carrier management to local returns processing, including return shipping and customs clearance. Another criterion was the quality and reliability of the service provider for fast and secure delivery to the customer.
«Initially, we wanted to take care of shipping to Switzerland and the UK ourselves. However, we quickly realised that this required a great deal of expert know-how. We therefore quickly needed a cross-border partner who could take care of these processes and also guarantee good shipping times for our customers.»
Florian Übleis, Chief Digital Sales Officer
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Compatible cross-border solution for Switzerland and the UK to the existing EU fulfillment service provider.
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Fast delivery times across the border including collection, customs clearance and carrier management.
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Local returns processing including return shipment and return customs clearance to the shipping company’s warehouse.
The Solution.
Together with Arena, MS Direct set up an end-to-end cross-border delivery process for Switzerland and the UK in just four months. Via MS Direct’s API, Arena was given access to the digital cross-border platform, which provides access to all shipment data, status updates and tax-related documents. The logistics solution from MS Direct included the following services:
Collection of goods:
MS Direct organizes the collection of goods from the fulfillment warehouse of Versandmanufaktur GmbH.
Customs clearance:
Even before the goods leave the warehouse, export customs clearance is carried out via MS Direct. MS Direct automatically selects the most favorable customs clearance procedure for the shipment in order to save Arena money. The parcels reach the destination country via transit, where customs clearance is completed. They are then fed into the local logistics network of the selected last-mile carrier.
Carrier management:
Thanks to MS Direct’s carrier network, Arena can send parcels to Switzerland and the UK with the parcel service providers that end customers are used to. In Switzerland this is Swiss Post and in the UK Royal Mail. Arena also benefits from lower shipping prices in Switzerland thanks to the consolidation of consignments.
Local returns processing:
Thanks to the collaboration, end customers in both Switzerland and the UK can return their items to a domestic address. MS Direct checks the returns within 24 hours, classifies them as ABC goods and prepares them for return transportation.
Return shipping & customs clearance:
The return transport from the returns location to the fulfillment warehouse of the shipping company is also organized by MS Direct. Return customs clearance is carried out and any refunds are credited to Arena. Depending on MS Direct’s classification, Versandmanufaktur processes the returns further and stores them for resale.
«MS Direct gave us excellent advice from the very first moment. They always understood our concerns and provided us with clear and competent support. Even after the set-up, we appreciate the excellent support and the pragmatic and friendly cooperation.»
Florian Übleis, Chief Digital Sales Officer
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End-to-end cross-border delivery process from collection to returns
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Optimized selection of customs clearance processes to save on customs duties
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Carrier management for fast last-mile delivery
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Local returns processing
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Modern and transparent cross-border portal
The Benefits.
Thanks to the partnership-based overall solution from Versandmanufaktur and MS Direct, Arena now benefits from an all-encompassing shipping service for the whole of Europe, including the customs countries of Switzerland and the UK. The result of the cross-border solution:
No-Border Commerce: Thanks to MS Direct’s expertise, Arena no longer has to worry about complex customs formalities. End customers benefit from a delivery experience as if they had ordered domestically.
Fast delivery times: Thanks to automated customs clearance processes, shipments pass through transit in a short time and reach the end customer faster.
Money saved: By automatically selecting the most cost-effective customs clearance procedure, Arena saves a great deal on customs duties.
Customer-friendly returns: Customers can conveniently return to a domestic address. This means that returns are checked more quickly and can be refunded sooner.
Modern tool: Thanks to the digital cross-border platform, Arena has a complete overview of all its shipments and documents at all times.
«Thanks to MS Direct, we can now supply Switzerland and the UK and benefit from their automated customs clearance processes. This gives us the certainty that our consignments are always declared in accordance with the law and cleared through customs in a cost-saving manner. And our customers benefit from fast delivery as a result.»
Florian Übleis, Chief Digital Sales Officer
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Legal protection thanks to reliable customs clearance processes.
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More satisfied customers thanks to fast delivery times and a local returns address.
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Saved customs costs through automated selection of the most cost-effective procedure.
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Full control thanks to transparent cross-border tool
Would you also like to open up new European markets with customs borders in an uncomplicated way? Our sales team will be happyto help you find the right cross-border solution.
Über Arena
Arena is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of swimwear and swimming accessories. As part of New Balance, the brand is now the fourth-largest sporting goods manufacturer in the world and is still the only owner-managed brand among the global players.