Simple is harder than complex: DHL’s Sandeep Juneja-OxBig News Network

DHL operates in a commoditized, price-sensitive category. How do you approach brand positioning?

We operate in international express logistics, across 220 countries, with 400 planes, thousands of hubs and this scale isn’t built overnight. It’s years of investment, learning and maturity. Price competitiveness is important, of course. But what matters equally is enabling our customers to offer the best experience to their buyers. They realize that working with DHL enhances their own brand. Our positioning is about making the complex world of logistics simple and reliable, and that reflects in our brand promise: Excellence. Simply Delivered.

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How is your marketing strategy evolving to communicate this?

We stay consistent with our promise across every medium. Whether it’s advertising during IPL with Mumbai Indians, digital outreach to e-commerce sellers or our larger partnerships with organizations like DGFT (Directorate General of Foreign Trade) and GJEPC (Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council), the messaging is about simplifying complexity. The world is complex, documentation rules differ, customs interpretation varies, and our job is to make that invisible to the customer. Simple is harder than complex, but that’s what we strive for.

Through our GoTrade initiative, we work with government bodies like the DGFT to contribute insights that help simplify export processes for Indian SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) and MSMEs (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises). We’ve signed MoUs (memorandum of understanding) with DGFT and GJEPC to ease cross-border trade. It’s about helping more businesses go global—a small but important contribution to India’s $5 trillion economy vision.

Are you moving towards more vertical-specific marketing strategies?

Yes. While gems and jewellery is a strong focus, we are also doubling down on sunrise sectors like life sciences, healthcare, e-commerce, and new energy. These sectors have complex, fast-growing supply chains and need specialized logistics. For instance, globally, DHL committed around €2 billion recently to life sciences logistics alone.

How does your marketing differentiate between large exporters and emerging SMEs or D2C brands?

The needs are different. Large exporters want deep conversations, integration into their IT systems, and help navigating complex government policies like PLI or MRO schemes. MSMEs, on the other hand, need simple, digital-first tools. Our MyGTS platform helps them calculate landed costs across 50 countries. They can export, import, and manage documentation all through a dashboard. We also ensure 24×7 call centre support without painful IVRS (interactive voice response system).

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DHL is a B2B brand. Why invest in sponsorships like IPL and Formula One?

Sponsorships like Formula One or IPL aren’t just visibility tools—they tell a deeper story. For instance, in F1, we move 1,400 tonnes of material across countries every two weeks. That showcases our complex logistics capabilities. With IPL, cricket has mass resonance in India and it puts us into living room conversations. Plus, through activations, we create experiences that money can’t buy—an MSME getting to meet Rohit Sharma or a customer kid being coached by Kieron Pollard.

How is DHL staying ahead as digital-first logistics players grow?

We aim to be digital by default, not just digital-first. It’s not enough to have a fancy portal. You need deep process knowledge. Our Import Easy dashboard, for instance, reduces 50 touchpoints across shipments to a single workflow. True digital transformation is about breaking complex processes into simple customer experiences—and that’s where we differentiate.

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Sustainability is a key focus globally. How is DHL approaching it?

We’re serious about it. Our CEO committed to net-zero by 2050, well ahead of the curve. We run 100% solar-powered hubs like Bengaluru, plant 1,00,000 trees annually in India and have one of the largest EV (electric vehicle) fleets globally. But 90% of our emissions come from planes. That’s why we are investing heavily in Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). In 2023, DHL consumed nearly 15% of the global SAF supply and blended over 3% into our aviation fuel, more than regulatory mandates.

Finally, what will drive DHL’s brand growth in India?

For us, it’s simple: people plus quality equals growth. We invest intensely in people—that’s why DHL has ranked among the top three great places to work globally for four consecutive years. That people-focused approach delivers the service quality that builds growth organically.