• Third-party and contract logistics providers have become central to global trade strategy, shaping market access, export competitiveness, and supply chain resilience rather than simply executing transport.
• Multimodal agility, digital execution, and precision logistics are now critical differentiators, especially for regulated and high-growth sectors that demand compliance-ready, traceable, and disruption-resistant supply chains.
• For India’s manufacturing and export ambitions, the ability of 3PLs to act as strategic advisors, risk managers, and network architects will determine whether production strength converts into sustained global presence.

Global trade is becoming markedly more complex, driven by decentralised production, heightened demand volatility and far tighter delivery expectations. In this shifting landscape, third-party logistics (3PL) and contract logistics providers have moved from the periphery of supply chains to the centre of corporate strategy.

No longer evaluated purely on cost or capacity, they now influence decisions that determine market access, export competitiveness and operational resilience. For India, seeking to position itself as a major manufacturing and export hub, the sophistication of its logistics partners may prove just as consequential as the quality of its industrial output.

Industry leaders examining this shift stressed that logistics advantage increasingly stems from multimodal agility, digital execution and the ability to pre-empt disruptions rather than simply respond to them. The sector’s value proposition has expanded from transport coordination to full-spectrum supply chain design, making logistics capability a determinant of trade outcomes.

From service provider to strategic advisor

Raaj Jobanputra, Director of JW Group, noted that logistics providers are now shaping decisions that previously belonged exclusively to manufacturers. “3PLs are no longer responders; they are planners,” he said, emphasising the deepening involvement of logistics partners in forecasting, network design and risk scenario mapping.

Jobanputra observed that as production footprints become geographically dispersed and demand cycles shorten, companies are relying more heavily on logistics partners to interpret market signals and recalibrate routing strategies. Jobanputra further argued that “competitiveness increasingly depends on the ability of logistics systems to guarantee continuity—particularly in volatile trade environments where traditional norms of seasonality, predictability and lane stability can no longer be assumed.”

This elevation of 3PLs into strategic roles reflects an industry-wide acknowledgement that logistics strategy is now a proxy for market resilience.

Multimodal flexibility as a competitive advantage

For manufacturers planning export growth, the ability to move product through multimodal systems with minimal friction is becoming critical. Sheetal Shetty, Group Managing Director of Capricorn Logistics, highlighted the shift towards integrated networks that blur the lines between air, ocean, road and rail.

“Enterprises want flexibility, not just faster movement,” Shetty said. “A competitive 3PL must offer seamless transitions between modes without the customer feeling the complexity.”

He pointed out that India’s manufacturing spread right from coastal clusters to deep hinterland industrial zones, necessitates precise coordination between inland logistics, cross-border procedures and long-haul capacity. Shetty described the emerging role of logistics providers as “network architects,” designing hybrid movement strategies that hedge against geopolitical disruptions, port congestion and airline capacity swings.

Shetty further added that, as trade patterns continue to shift, multimodal adaptability will become fundamental to sustaining India’s export competitiveness.

Precision logistics for regulated industries

Pharmaceuticals and speciality chemicals, among India’s fastest-growing export sectors, require logistics capabilities that go far beyond transport. Krishnakant Parab, Senior Vice President, Business Operations at Encube Ethicals, framed logistics performance as a compliance issue rather than a commercial variable.

“For regulated sectors, logistics is not a cost centre, it is a compliance function,” he stressed.

Parab noted that temperature integrity, batch traceability and secure, validated corridors have become minimum expectations, with manufacturers demanding real-time monitoring and proactive exception management. Any deviation, he warned, can escalate into regulatory non-compliance, product recalls or lost markets.

Parab’s perspective reflects a broader shift as regulated industries are driving demand for high-precision, digitally authenticated logistics infrastructure that can sustain export credibility.

Digital infrastructure as a growth engine

Digitalisation is emerging as the backbone of logistics transformation, particularly in retail, e-commerce and cross-border consumer flows. Atul Barve, Vice President and Head of Supply Chain Operations at Reliance Retail – Digital, noted that logistics performance directly shapes consumer behaviour and brand trust.

“For modern retail, logistics is a direct extension of the customer experience,” he observed.

Barve highlighted the growing influence of AI-enabled demand forecasting, robotics-driven fulfilment and automated last-mile systems. These technologies, he argued, are reshaping expectations for stock accuracy, real-time communication and service guarantees. He also emphasised the expanding role of 3PLs in cross-border e-commerce, where compliance-ready documentation and reliable transit timelines are essential for export growth.

Digital execution, Barve suggested, is now fundamental to logistics scalability.

Resilience and transparency: The new metrics of value

For global enterprises, the value of logistics partners is increasingly tied to their ability to anticipate risk. Samuel Kirubairaj Albert, Director of Customer Service & Logistics at Colgate-Palmolive, emphasised that supply continuity depends on how well logistics partners understand regulatory requirements, market variability and operational volatility.

“Our global networks depend on partners who can anticipate rather than react,” he said.

He argued that transparency—enabled through visibility dashboards, integrated documentation and automated alerts—is now essential to navigating multi-regional flows. The shift, he noted, is from logistics as an operational output to logistics as a risk management function.

Albert’s remarks reflect the growing reliance on logistics partners for resilience engineering across international networks.

A logistics blueprint for India’s next phase of trade growth

Chandranath Dey of JLL underscored that India’s export ambitions require logistics capabilities that are not only scalable but structurally modern. He observed that as India advances from being a cost-competitive manufacturing base to an innovation-driven production hub, logistics must evolve in parallel to support diverse cargo types, compliance obligations and unpredictable market dynamics.

The discussion pointed to a clear conclusion that, the next chapter of global competitiveness will be authored by logistics providers who combine multimodal breadth, digital intelligence and operational foresight. In an era defined by volatility, logistics is emerging as the decisive factor that determines whether national production strength translates into global market presence.

India’s ability to convert manufacturing capacity into sustainable export growth will depend on how effectively its 3PL and contract logistics partners re-engineer the pathways through which goods reach the world. The logistics sector, once considered an auxiliary function, is now shaping the very architecture of global trade.

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