Amidst shifting consumer demand and a move toward true omnichannel, retailers’ ability to leverage their physical presence is vitally important. Options such as deliver from store, buy online pickup in store (BOPIS), buy online return in store (BORIS) and delivery drop-offs in lockers are a major advantage over online retailers.
The global shipping landscape may go through one and possibly two seismic shifts this fall: either a Brexit in the UK, a U.S. pullout from the Universal Postal Union, or both. So how should you prepare? How quickly can you adjust your shipping plans? This latest special report from MCM taps experts and explores these issues in detail.
FedEx has partnered with discount retailer Dollar General, offering dropoff and pickup services at 8,000 Dollar General stores by the end of 2020, giving it rural penetration it lacked. Along with its own stores and partnerships that also include Walgreens, Kroger and Albertsons, FedEx now has a network of 62,000 locations.
Five months after it was initially scheduled to go into effect, the U.S. Postal Service will change how it calculates dimensional weight pricing while expanding DIM pricing to all zones across its Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail and Parcel Select products. The USPS is also lowering its DIM divisor from 194 to 166, increasing the cost.
There are many opportunities to make your SCM more efficient, reduce costs and provide higher service levels to customers, including in sourcing, storage, fulfillment, distribution, IT and transportation. Here are four major ecommerce supply chain areas that you can streamline to reduce your overall fulfillment costs.
Five months after investing in two-day ecommerce delivery and returns service ShopRunner, UPS is partnering with the company, offering a year’s free subscription to the 47 million U.S. members of its My Choice program. ShopRunner’s 100+ retail partners include Ann Taylor, Bloomingdale’s, Chico’s and Kate Spade New York.
FedEx has decided not to renew its air shipping contract with Amazon, which expires June 30, in a seeming reaction to Amazon’s growing delivery prowess, including construction of a new air hub outside Cincinnati. Amazon’s ground and international business with the carrier remains intact for now.
In a saturated industry, subscription box companies need a differentiator to succeed. From Blue Apron’s first-ever experiential retail popup shop to Birchbox’s partnership with Walgreens, they’re looking for ways to grow their business and meet consumer demands. Shipping excellence is one way to set yourself apart from the pack.
Starting in January, FedEx will make deliveries seven days a week to meet increasing demand from ecommerce shippers, while diverting about 2 million packages per year from the U.S. Postal Service’s last-mile service to build necessary density and shave costs.
The largest two-story fulfillment center in the country will be under construction later this year in the Bronx, NY, with a planned 2021 opening, enabling ecommerce tenants to service the New York metro market with same-day delivery. It will total 969,000 square feet, including 595,000 square feet of fulfillment space.