Dropshiping: revisión de la literatura y situación en España

Abstract

Often, formulas are sought to help entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have a business model that allows them to operate and expand globally at a low cost. Scalability and internationalization of the business model have become a general necessity for entrepreneurs and SMEs due to the limited size and demand of domestic markets. Therefore, entrepreneurs and companies must internationalize their operations to grow and develop. E-commerce-based businesses are a suitable option to achieve this and expand the business internationally; however, entrepreneurs and companies face the challenge of shipping their goods to foreign countries and the difficulties of delivering them to the end customer. This work aims to analyze and delve deeper into Dropshipping to shed light on its contribution in the context of Spanish e-commerce and assess its economic dimension. It also seeks to establish its theoretical framework and identify the companies that comprise it. Dropshipping allows entrepreneurs and SMEs to expand their product range without acquiring stocks, incurring the costs of storing such items, managing inventory, or handling delivery logistics—the well-known "last-mile delivery." Dropshipping offers various delivery options, such as discreet or customized packaging, including invoices and receipts from the company that hired the service. Our study, focused on Dropshipping, aims to describe the phenomenon, assess its scale in Spain, establish its theoretical models, highlighting its advantages and disadvantages, and propose solutions to some of its issues, such as those generated by information asymmetry presented in agency theory. We propose an efficient solution to this problem based on Blockchain technology and the use of smart contracts, as well as rapid international expansion mechanisms through growth hacking techniques.