For Tapestry, the US-based parent company of luxury brands Coach and Kate Spade, long-term collaboration has been the foundation of logistics resilience. Over nearly a decade, its partnership with Bleckmann has consistently combined operational excellence with strategic agility. In this episode of Beyond Threads, host Erik Janssen Steenberg is joined by Peter Schreuder, Senior Director for Fulfilment and Supply Chain at Tapestry, and Ruud Mars, Business Development at Bleckmann. They discuss why collaboration, adaptability and shared accountability are key to resilience in logistics.
Press play on the Beyond Threads podcast to hear how a decade-long collaboration between Bleckmann and Tapestry has turned logistics into a true platform for growth.
Building a European presence: From distribution to direct operations
Tapestry’s expansion into Europe offers a clear example of how strategic logistics partnerships enable sustainable international growth. Until 2013, the company relied on a distribution model to reach European markets. When the business decided to go direct – establishing its own inventory and fulfilment operations – it needed a logistics partner capable of supporting a multi-brand, omnichannel strategy at scale.
“We moved from a distributor model to building our own inventory and fulfilment organisation in Europe,” recalls Peter. “That decision required an agile partner who could support stores, wholesale and e-commerce seamlessly.” Following a competitive RFP process, Tapestry selected Bleckmann as its partner of choice. It was the beginning of a long and productive relationship, built on agility, close collaboration and innovation.
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Navigating disruption: Agile responses to challenging times
The past decade has tested even the most established supply chains, with events such as Brexit and COVID-19 putting cross-border logistics operations under significant pressure. For Tapestry, disruptions such as these have reinforced the importance of an agile, well-coordinated logistics partnership. “Brexit changed everything,” recalls Peter. “UK cross-border traffic suddenly required customs formalities, which slowed speed to market. Some third-party carriers even stopped UK work.”
In response, Bleckmann and Tapestry rapidly implemented a dual-warehouse model – one serving the UK, the other mainland Europe – reducing customs friction and improving local delivery performance. When COVID-19 later hit global transport networks, the two companies again acted quickly, rerouting shipments and adapting capacity to maintain customer service levels. What could have been a period of disruption instead became proof of the partnership’s robustness and responsiveness.
Future-proofing through technology, integration and communication
Looking ahead, both teams see data integration and communication as essential to long-term logistics resilience. The focus is on continually improving the integration of systems and tracking capabilities so that performance data feeds into a single, end-to-end view. “We’re working on improved integration and better tracking capabilities with platforms that feed into our end-to-end dashboards,” says Peter. “It’s about combining transport data with our own dashboards to measure and improve the customer journey.”
This shared focus on visibility and integration reflects the essence of the partnership itself: continuous improvement through collaboration. By combining advanced technology with open communication, we’re building the foundation for a supply chain that not only prioritises operational efficiency but can also adapt to whatever comes next. As the fashion industry faces ever greater complexity, our experience with Tapestry offers a clear lesson for all fashion and lifestyle brands: resilience begins with partnership.
Press play on the Beyond Threads podcast to hear the full discussion and learn about the importance of a robust and resilient logistics partnership in securing long-term growth.
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Transcript
Eric Sustainber:
Hi there and welcome to another episode of the Beyond Threats podcast by Bleckmann. This is the podcast where we take a deep dive into what’s developing, what the trends are in fashion and lifestyle, and predominantly into the supply chain and logistics space.
Today, we’re taking a deep dive into logistics strategy in fashion and lifestyle. For that reason, I’m joined by my colleague, Business Development Manager in transportation, Ruud Mar.
Ruud Mar:
Thank you for having me, Eric. Absolutely thrilled to be here.
Eric:
Great to have you. And we’re also joined by Peter Ser from Tapestry. Thank you very much for being here today.
Peter Ser:
My pleasure.
Eric:
To kick things off, we’re covering transport and logistics, and how today’s challenges and developments are pushing us to think more strategically rather than purely operationally.
Peter, could you give us a brief overview of who you are, what you do, and how transport strategy within Tapestry has shaped its international growth?
Peter:
Thanks, Eric. My name is Peter Ser. I’m the Senior Director for Fulfillment and Supply Chain at Tapestry. Tapestry is a house of brands, currently including Coach and Kate Spade. Coach is the oldest and largest brand, founded in 1941, with strong presence in the US, APEC, and later Europe.
Europe was an emerging market for us. Until 2013, we operated via a distributor model, after which we decided to go direct and set up our own fulfillment organization in Europe. Following several RFPs and RFIs, we selected Bleckmann as our logistics partner. Since then, the business has grown rapidly.
When I joined in 2014, we had just a few stores and wholesale accounts. Today, we operate almost 100 stores across Europe, have a strong wholesale network, and a full e-commerce organization including marketplaces. It’s truly omnichannel.
Eric:
You’ve been on the podcast before, Ruud, back when you were Director of Transport Operations. Now you’ve moved into business development. Can you introduce yourself and explain that transition?
Ruud:
Sure. I’ve been with Bleckmann for about six years. During my first five and a half years, we built the transport organization and the IT landscape to support it. My vision was to become a market leader in omnichannel transport with state-of-the-art IT infrastructure.
Now my focus is business development—making sure these capabilities are visible externally. Bleckmann doesn’t limit itself to just one or two carriers; instead, we offer brands a full menu of services, service levels, carriers, and couriers so the customer experience aligns perfectly with the brand strategy.
Eric:
You’ve worked closely together for many years. What were the key hurdles and projects in setting up cross-border transportation?
Peter:
When we started, the world was simpler. One of our biggest challenges was Brexit. We were centralized in the Netherlands with one DC for Coach, while Kate Spade had more operations in the UK. Brexit introduced customs formalities, delays, and loss of speed to market.
Bleckmann acted quickly with solutions when some logistics providers even stopped servicing the UK entirely. Eventually, we made more drastic decisions, such as setting up a separate UK DC alongside the Netherlands DC. This fundamentally changed our supply chain footprint.
Ruud:
Brexit hit overnight. Carriers claimed they were ready, but reality proved otherwise. Goods got stuck at borders, so we had to change carrier setups quickly to keep flows to the UK running smoothly.
Peter:
That decision led to rapid growth in our UK operations. Customers didn’t want the hassle of cross-border shipping anymore, so operating separate warehouses became necessary. It was a huge project, but it brought long-term benefits.
One thing I’m proud of is how Tapestry and Bleckmann moved closer as partners—focusing on root causes and solutions rather than blame. We collaborated across departments and organizations, which sped up decision-making enormously.
Eric:
Returns are a big topic in fashion. How has returns management evolved for you?
Peter:
Returns are a reality of doing business. While you want customers to keep products, returns are essential for conversion. For Tapestry, returns are a strategic lever. If returns aren’t hassle-free, customers simply won’t buy.
Speed is critical—customers want fast refunds, and we want returned products back in stock quickly. Our current footprint allows returns to stay local, avoiding customs issues and delays.
Ruud:
Returns also need to support circularity and revenue retention. Offering multiple return carriers and locations makes the process easier for customers. The key questions are always: which carrier, which service, which day?
Eric:
Looking ahead, what are the biggest opportunities to make transport a strategic capability for brands?
Peter:
Integrated tools, better tracking, and performance monitoring are essential. It’s also important to stay open to global platforms like Narvar, which play a key role in tracking and returns, even if local tools already exist.
Ruud:
Exactly. We aim to connect with these platforms, share data, and enhance the end-to-end customer journey. That integration removes a lot of burden from brands.
Eric:
Listening to you both, it’s clear that open communication and honest partnerships are key. Being upfront when something goes wrong builds trust and allows problems to be solved together.
Peter:
Absolutely. Reliable communication is one of the most important elements of the customer journey.
Eric:
We’re coming to the end of today’s episode. Thank you, Peter and Ruud, for sharing your insights and for demonstrating what a true partnership looks like between Tapestry and Bleckmann.
For those listening who want to get in touch, you can reach us through Bleckmann’s website, sales email, LinkedIn, or directly through our business development team.
Thank you to everyone for tuning in. I hope this episode was as educational for you as it was for me. Stay connected for upcoming episodes of the Beyond Threats podcast by Bleckmann.
My name is Eric Sustainber. See you soon.
