- Paraisópolis, a favela in São Paulo with over one hundred thousand residents, is the first to have the initiative;
- The project is a partnership among B2W, the local logistics startup Favela Brasil Xpress and the group of leaders from the ten largest favelas in Brazil, G10 Favelas;
- The plan is to scale the partnership to operate deliveries in more Brazilian favelas.
Brazilian retailer B2W Digital, owner of e-commerce brands such as Americanas and Submarino, announced on Monday that it has started delivering packages from online shopping in favelas.
In partnership with the local logistics startup Favela Brasil Xpress and the group of leaders from the ten largest favelas in Brazil G10 Favelas, the project intends to tackle logistical hurdles for delivering in places of difficult access, such as alleys without postal code within the favelas.
“Favelas handle each year the equivalent of the GDP of countries like Honduras and increasingly seek e-commerce to make their purchases. The challenge was exactly in logistics“, says Gilson Rodrigues, president of the Paraisópolis Residents’ Union and national president of G10 Favelas.
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Paraisópolis, with over one hundred thousand residents, is the first favela to receive the initiative, where, since the beginning of April, about 350 daily deliveries of B2W Digital’s e-commerce arrive at the doors of shoppers. It is an alternative to the pickup locations for products purchased over the internet, such as post offices. The plan is to scale the partnership to operate deliveries in more favelas.
According to the retailer, orders come from two containers installed in a community space, which works as a distribution center. After separation, deliveries are made within 12 hours. Favela Brasil Xpress is in charge of picking products and carrying out the last mile delivery.
“We put the postal code of the favelas in Brazilian e-commerce through a participatory, social and inclusive logistics initiative. The company came to revolutionize the delivery system in the favelas,” says Giva Pereira, CEO of Favela Brasil Xpress.
The operation has thirty-five workers, including couriers from the favela itself, who know the topography and carry the packages with bicycles. The initiative also intends to make electric bicycles and tuc-tucs available for deliveries.
“The project developed in Paraisópolis involves not only the sale and convenience of delivering products, but also a series of company sustainability commitments, such as income generation, inclusion and training for people in socially vulnerable communities,” says André Biselli, B2W Digital’s operations manager, responsible for last-mile logistics.
“We are using B2W’s strength to generate a positive impact on the lives of many people.”
In the first quarter of 2021, B2W recorded sales growth of 83% in January, 90% in February and 98% in March.
