Title: A method for selecting multiple logistics sites in cross-border e-commerce based on return uncertainty

Authors: Wang-xianzi Shen

Addresses: Business College, Yangzhou Polytechnic Institute, Jiangsu, 225127, China

Abstract: To reduce the location cost of cross-border e-commerce logistics sites, this article proposes a multi-logistics site location method based on return uncertainty. Firstly, a site selection model is established with the objective function of minimising site construction costs, transportation costs, return costs, and operating costs, and the constraint conditions of return recovery costs and delayed pick-up time; Then, using the Monte Carlo method to simulate the number of returned items, and using an improved chicken swarm algorithm based on simulated annealing, the cross-border e-commerce multi-logistics site location model is solved to complete the location selection. Experimental results show that this method can effectively reduce the related costs of cross-border e-commerce multi-logistics site selection. After applying this method, the total cost of multi-logistics site selection is 19.4 million yuan, while the total cost of the five comparative methods exceeds 20 million yuan.

Keywords: uncertainty of return; cross-border e-commerce; multi-logistics sites; site selection method; Monte Carlo method; improved chicken swarm algorithm.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEB.2024.141851

International Journal of Electronic Business, 2024 Vol.19 No.4, pp.344 - 361

Received: 21 Aug 2023
Accepted: 20 Nov 2023
Published online: 02 Oct 2024 *

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