A new study commissioned by mobile device business, Zebra Technologies, has revealed that most logistics providers expect to offer same-day delivery by 2023 and two-hour delivery by 2028.

In addition, 96 percent of survey respondents expect to use crowdsourced delivery or a network of drivers who choose to complete a specific order by 2028.

The findings were released in the Asia-Pacific edition of the Future of Fulfilment Vision study, which analyses how manufacturers, transportation and logistics firms and retailers are preparing to meet the growing needs of the on-demand economy.

The survey also confirms that click-and-collect will become ubiquitous in retail, with 99 per cent of retailer respondents saying they plan to implement click-and-collect to allow a more seamless fulfilment process by 2023.

However, cost and infrastructure challenges remain key impediments to the adoption of faster and more seamless fulfilment.

Ninety-two per cent of respondents cited capital investment and operating costs of implementing an omnichannel operation as a key challenge.

Only 42 per cent of supply chain respondents reported operating at an omnichannel level today. In contrast, an estimated 73 per cent of consumers shop across multiple channels.

In APAC, 93 per cent of respondents agreed that accepting and managing product returns remain a challenge. Revers logistics remain underdeveloped and significant opportunities for improvement remain.

Today, 58 per cent of retail respondents add a surcharge for returns, and 71 per cent have no plans to change this in the future.

Meanwhile, 71 per cent of survey respondents agree that more retailers will turn stores into fulfilment centers that can accommodate product returns.

“Driven by the always-connected, tech-savvy shopper, retailers, manufacturers and logistics companies are collaborating and swapping roles in uncharted ways to meet shoppers’ omnichannel product fulfillment and delivery expectations,” said Yvonne Lim, Zebra Technologies’ Southeast Asia channels lead.

Lim noted the fact that 95 per cent of survey respondents in Asia-Pacific agreed that e-commerce is driving the need for faster delivery and said companies are turning to digital technology and analytics to bring heightened automation, merchandise visibility and business intelligence to the supply chain.