UPS took a big leap this week by investing in crowdsourced startup Deliv, getting a seat on its board and a front-row seat on its operating model. Stay tuned to see how the carrier is able to leverage this relationship to better understand and take advantage of the burgeoning sector of the on-demand economy.
In a move aimed at better understanding the inner workings of the same-day delivery model, UPS has purchased a stake in crowdsourced delivery startup Deliv. Just how UPS will leverage this relationship and what it learns remains to be seen, but it surely has its eye on the burgeoning same-day delivery space, including competitor FedEx’s service for Neiman Marcus and others.
In a move surely designed to boost the already burgeoning rolls of Prime membership, Amazon has announced a change to its free shipping policy, raising the order threshold for the service to $49 for those without a $99 per year Prime subscription. The threshold had been orders of $35 or more.
Three years after having its acquisition of TNT snagged on EU regulatory concerns, UPS has filed an appeal of the FedEx-TNT deal. Will this latest move hang up the $4.8 billion deal for its main rival, announced last April? Stay tuned for the next installment.
An ERP system file conversion “don’t get no respect,” as Rodney Dangerfield would say. Everyone knows they need to write programs and convert files. However, it’s not uncommon to leave off detailed discussion of which files and tables to convert, what data fields and how much data (this year’s only or how many years’ history) until the implementation. So to help, here are 13 steps to help you navigate the often tedious but critical process.
With hundreds of millions of square feet of public space available for your retail warehouse in North America alone, how can your company do the best possible job of differentiating between facilities? Just as important, how can it choose the retail warehouse space that will be a perfect fit? Here are some tips that can help make the selection process a great success.
Nordstrom was ranked No. 1 in the annual Customer Experience Index results from the e-tailing group, conducted in Q4 2015, after missing the top 10 in 2014. See how other leading retailers ranked in the index, including how they were rated across a range of key customer experience metrics.
Nordstrom told analysts its ecommerce sales and omnichannel operations are performing well, but acknowledged the gains are coming at a significant cost. See where the costs are hitting, and some of the steps the company is taking to address them and recover losses in profitability.
Amazon is once again on the move in logistics and delivery, with Reuters reporting its courier-based Amazon Flex network is making parcel deliveries in addition to the typical everyday goods being sent to Prime members.
Reuters said Amazon did acknowledge that drivers for Amazon Flex in Texas had already begun mixing in parcel deliveries with regular Prime Now orders. Amazon Flex, which allows couriers to sign up for delivery shifts via an app, is currently available in 14 cities including Seattle, Las Vegas, Phoenix and Dallas.
What were some of the major themes in handling holiday 2015 returns?
Patrick Allard, VIce President of Sales and Business Development for Newgistics, recently spoke with Multichannel Merchant Senior Editor Mike O’Brien on what his company observed from working with its 450+ retail customers, including the growth in ecommerce returns processing and the impact of trends like free returns and other perks offered by retailers.