Business Chief USA October 2020

One of the world’s leading mail
and goods shipping providers.
Asendia USA is the US arm of Asendia, one of the world’s
leading parcel and mail shipping providers. Founded
in 2012 as part of a joint venture with La Poste and Swiss
Post, Asendia specializes in international shipping of
packages, business mail, direct marketing materials,
and publications. Asendia offers high quality B2C global
delivery solutions for its customers. The organization is
present in 17 countries across Europe, Asia, Oceania, and
the US and provides a diverse range of ecommerce
and mail solutions to empower businesses to grow
across borders.
Gary Shunk is Asendia USA’s Senior VP of Marketing,
Pricing and Partnerships, with additional responsibilities in
Sales and Key Accounts/Customer Care Management.
“My experience in the logistics sector goes back 39
years,” he says. “I started out in sales and then went into
management with FedEx back in the 1980’s. It was
at FedEx that I benefited from solid sales management
and leadership training. I left FedEx in 1989 to become
an entrepreneur and have since contributed to the growth
and development of the organization we are today.”
With such extensive experience, Shunk has observed
the transformation of e-commerce first-hand. “Global
eCommerce has become a fantastic opportunity for
growth, but can be challenging in the world we live
in today,” he says. “The customs, security changes,
and guidelines for shipping internationally require
the ability to adapt to constant changes. Flexibility with
choices while ensuring security and customs compliance
is how we help companies achieve their goals. Parcel
shipping is 60% of our business. Asendia’s strategy had to
change in order for us to succeed, and that is what
we did. Transporting sold products versus mail or printed
matter is much different in many ways – and, as everyone
now knows, speed and visibility are critical to the customer
experience. Transportation companies have had to
improve and expand their scope and coverage.
Asendia is doing just that through expansion of facilities,
acquisitions, improved automation, increased tracking
capabilities, and above all employee safety. The
e-commerce industry demands reliability and ease of use,
and our strategy is to ensure we continue to provide both
as one of the top players in the industry.”
Having established a key, strategic relationship with Adore
Me, Shunk believes that collaboration has been influential.
“Adore Me began with a strict interest in the US market, but
quickly saw the opportunity to grow their subscription
model business into other English-speaking countries,” he
Gary Shunk
@ Ascendia USA
says. “Because of the trust we have built in each other’s
people, systems, and capabilities, we are successful at
working together and finding creative ways to adjust
services. This flexibility allows us to find cost-effective
solutions that meet the expectations of both organizations.”
Shunk understands the importance of an individual
approach and believes it is vital to create custom solutions
for each customer. “We understand that one size does not
fit all, so we make a point to work with each customer to
create a customized solution that suits their business plan,”
he says. “Some may want the most economical method for
international distribution because their product value is
low, and high international shipping costs on low-value
orders can deter consumers from shopping outside their
home country. Others want speed, and cost is not as
critical. Almost all retailers want to be able to have the
tracking visibility their consumers expect and the data that
supports the performance.”
With COVID-19 disrupting organizations globally, Shunk
affirms that employee safety has become critical. “We’re
very fortunate to have operations managers and operation
workers that we have because they’ve gone above and
beyond,” he says. “The pandemic has brought people
closer together as a team. Communication has been
positive and we’ve worked extremely hard. All six of our
operating facilities have been able to stay open, but it has
changed the way we manage our employees and how we
remotely manage the company.”
With the future in mind, Shunk has a clear idea of what he
expects the next few years at Asendia to look like. “As the
ecommerce industry continues to grow and adapt to the
ever-changing needs of consumers, Asendia looks forward to
continuing along on this journey with our customers to help
them evolve with the changes and enjoy long-term growth
and success with both domestic and international sales.”