English East India Company

The East India Company is the archetype of a firm that controlled a whole supply chain, from sourcing in Asia and ocean shipping to warehousing and sale in London, and its history shows the risks of that much concentrated power. It traded spices, textiles, tea, and other goods under a royal monopoly and eventually governed much of India with its own army. After the Indian Rebellion of 1857, the British Crown took over its territories, and the company was formally dissolved on June 1, 1874. Owning ships, warehouses, and sales channels still trades greater control against higher cost and risk.

• Third-Party Logistics3PLAn outside warehouse that ships your orders
• Bonded WarehouseStorage where duty waits until withdrawal
• Landed CostTotal cost to get a product ready to sell

• Vasco da Gama's Sea Route to India1497–1499 · Portugal reaches India by sailing around Africa
• Dutch East India Company (VOC)1602–1799 · A Dutch company gets a monopoly on trade with Asia
• Hudson's Bay Company Charter1670 · Charles II grants a fur trade monopoly over Hudson Bay

• Navigation Acts1651–1849 · English laws reserving colonial trade for English ships
• Treaty of Nanking1842 · Opium War treaty that opened China's treaty ports

1. East India Company britannica.com
2. East India Company en.wikipedia.org