Randula Chandrarathne was appointed CEO of John Keells Logistics Pvt. Ltd (JKLL) during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. As the ThirdParty Logistics (3PL) arm of Sri Lanka’s largest listed conglomerate John Keells Holdings PLC (JKH), JKLL spearheaded by Chandrarathne together with his dynamic team, pushed beyond boundaries to ensure business remained uninterrupted in history’s most challenging of times. Keeping vital supply lines open during the sporadic curfews and islandwide lockdown was no easy task. However, the team’s commitment and resilience ensured that business continued, and people had access to necessities during these trying times. 

As the Third Party Logistics (3PL) arm of JKH, and an essential logistics services provider, JKLL continued to operate during the lockdown. “The challenges were many. Even at the height of the pandemic, we ensured that we stayed open for business so that economic activity could continue. We had a responsibility to feed vital supply lines in both the domestic economy and the export sector. But, to make this possible we ensured that our teams also felt safe and comfortable in reporting to work and believed in the company and the mission at the same time, so the health and safety of our workforce was paramount,” Randula explains.

MOVING THE ECONOMY  

When JKLL launched, the firm initially provided logistics services to the Group’s supermarket business, Keells. As one of the largest retail chains in the country, Keells revamped its strategy five years ago and today has multiple private labels and thirdparty products at its growing chain of outlets countrywide. Bringing global retail chain standards to Sri Lanka, Keells soon focused on building an efficient supply-chain vital to increase efficiency in its retail business through a collaboration with JKLL, which was also at that point looking to re-strategize and upscale its capabilities.

In 2011, JKLL extended its reach beyond JKH providing its services to external businesses including multinationals and many blue chip companies in the country. “Because we started as a logistics provider for a large super-market chain, where business dynamics are far more complex and complicated due to the sheer volume and number of SKUs and deliveries, we had finetuned and optimised processes to ensure customers get the right price point. And this is what we now offer all our clients, the expertise and capabilities to keep their goods moving on time at the best price,” Randula says. 

JKLL uses fully-fledged business intelligence platforms that integrate seamlessly with existing processes to automate previously labour-intensive and time-consuming work, thereby improving productivity and optimizing costs. In alignment with its long term business strategy carved out in early 2019, JKLL is on a mission of growth. Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2020 the firm grew its warehouse footprint by 200,000sqft, which is a remarkable achievement for the company. 

JKLL operates 12 warehouses that are strategically located in Sri Lanka’s logistics corridor closer to export processing zones. A majority of the warehouses are multi-user facilities, which posted a higher risk of multiple supply chains getting affected in a COVID-19 positive situation. 

At the start of the 2020/2021 financial year, JKLLs total warehouse footprint has grown to 517,000sqft, up from 318,000sqft. JKLL serves an extensive suite of industries from apparel to electronics, lubricants, PVC, automobiles, FMCG and FMCD, packaging, paints, retail, confectionaries, home appliances, etc. 

E-COMMERCE ENABLER 

JKLL has also built expertise around e-commerce fulfilment and last-mile delivery. According to Randula, “Some e-commerce companies that initially launched in Sri Lanka were not remarkably successful for two reasons: the first being that the market was not developed, and second, they had to invest heavily in logistics. The pandemic saw an online sales boom leading to a spurt in new e-commerce entrants, but without a viable logistics solution these would not have taken off, so that is where we came in. Our success serving a dynamic and fast-moving supermarket business gave us the edge to create a last-mile delivery fulfilment business quickly and seamlessly. When the first COVID-19 wave hit Sri Lanka, we were agile in successfully converting one of our warehouse facilities within just three days to a fully-fledged online fulfilment centre for the Keells supermarket”.

A second advantage is that we know the pain points in our e-commerce business, and we try to mitigate the risks. Usually, a person getting into this business will try to invest considerably in a vehicles fleet, but we can minimize the investment and go on a rental model because as a logistics business that shares in the core values of JKH, they know they can trust us. One of its last-mile-delivery clients is Providore.shop. JKLL is very flexible in catering to client requirements mainly because of the dynamic team we have, and our retail experience. The added advantage of our infrastructure enables us to provide a service that is efficient. 

Currently,we have 12 warehouses across the country and use a Tier 01 Warehouse Management System (WMS), which has all the automatized systems predefined. In addition, we have a fleet of 210 trucks, 22 bespoke trucks and 10 Eutectic trucks. All these are enablers for our business to function efficiently.

Despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, in 2020 the firm grew its warehouse footprint by 200,000sqft, which is a remarkable achievement for the company

THE COVID-19 CHALLENGE  

Because JKLL provides an essential service to keep the wheels of commerce turning, the company was indefatigable in its efforts to remain operational during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. “We got the necessary approvals from government and healthcare officials, institutionalized safety and social distancing measures, and provided the necessary technology and tools for our teams to empower them to work during the crisis,” Randula recalls. 

The biggest challenge, he recalls, was people being able to report to work safely as most of them lived in the COVID-19 affected clusters in Colombo. In a bid to address this, the company provided staff with accommodation, meals, and personal protective equipment.

“We created multiple shifts and mutually isolated workgroups with the warehouses to minimize the impact to the overall business in case of possible contamination. We also took care of our 3rd party employees such as drivers, helpers, janitors, and security staff by providing temporary accommodation facilities to minimize contamination. Regular awareness sessions were held with the participation of senior management and a COVID-19 risk response team and protocols were actioned.” 

On the many initiatives taken by JKLL, Randula says that voluntary PCR tests were conducted with the help of a reputed health care service provider and 10% of its total cadre was tested on a weekly basis. The firm also set up temporary quarantine centres approved by health authorities and took care of employees’ families during their absence. 

“In addition, we proactively engaged with our suppliers and service providers educating them on JKLLs safety practices, while ensuring additional resources were assigned to monitor their adherence. A weekly internal audit was conducted to assess the COVID-19 safety practices.” he further explained. 

Despite the pandemic and its impact, JKLL ensured an efficient and uninterrupted service. All supplier payments were made on time and the firm passed on all cost benefits to clients, to help flatten the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, by giving back in whatever possible way JKLL could. The experience helped JKLL manage the second wave with ease and all its warehouses remained operational. To date, the company continues to follow stringent health and safety, and social distancing protocols.

THE FUTURE RE-IMAGINED 

While the economy lumbers back to normalcy, Randula has no doubt JKLL is playing a vital role to fast track the recovery for many industries. “We at JKLL are in a rapid expansion mode because we can make a difference. We want to expand into new markets and introduce innovative services. We have demonstrated a clear edge over our competitors in logistics because we are agile enough to provide services to suit the specific requirements of each client. Also, due to our asset-lite model, we can provide our customers with low-cost solutions which ultimately benefit end consumers,” Randula explains. JKLL is readying for its next phase of growth and as the country recoups from the impact of COVID-19, the firm will look to expand into other verticals.

We at JKLL are in a rapid expansion mode because we can make a difference. We want to expand into new markets and introduce innovative services