Shipping

Consumers’ Delivery Expectations Have Changed Thanks to Amazon
August 8, 2017 at 11:59 am

Nearly 90 percent of respondents in a recent Total Retail and IBM survey said they “strongly" or “somewhat" agree that Amazon.com has changed consumers’ expectations for order delivery (see the chart below). The report, The Amazon Effect: How Retailers Are Adapting Their Businesses to Better Compete With the Industry Leader, analyzes the impact Amazon’s growing…

Office Depot Launches Same-Day Delivery in 3 Markets
August 8, 2017 at 11:01 am

Office Depot will begin offering same-day delivery service just in time for back-to-school students and professionals alike. The office supplies retailer is partnering with Deliv, a crowdsourced, same-day delivery startup, to provide the shopping option. The service will roll out in three markets, including Atlanta and Los Angeles on Aug. 28, and in the Fort Lauderdale/Miami area…

Lowe's Announces Job Cuts
August 8, 2017 at 10:28 am

Lowe's confirmed last week that it's laying off an undisclosed number of delivery workers nationwide as the company shifts to a third-party delivery service. In an email to The Charlotte Observer, the home improvement retailer said its decision is in response to “the growing demand for timely delivery,” including next-day delivery, in select markets. The latest layoff announcement…

Analyzing the FedEx, UPS 2017 Holiday Surcharge Increases
August 8, 2017 at 10:06 am

Both FedEx and UPS have announced new, temporary holiday surcharges that will impact shipping costs for e-commerce businesses this holiday season. UPS In June, UPS announced a new peak season charge applicable during selected weeks in November and December 2017 for U.S. Residential, Large Packages and Packages Over Maximum Limits. The increase means that every…

Retailers Invest in Reviews, Shipping Upgrades to Better Compete With Amazon
August 3, 2017 at 12:09 pm

As retailers know, much of Amazon’s success can be credited to its many innovations, from supply chain to customer experience to merchandising and more. To keep pace with the e-commerce leader and its many technology innovations, retailers have started to implement new technology capabilities of their own. In the chart below, taken from Total Retail's…

5 Steps to Make Sure You’re Ahead of the Holiday Rush
July 17, 2017 at 8:57 am

The holidays traditionally come with a spike in sales for retailers. This past holiday season was no different — the fourth quarter of 2016 yielded a 17.8 percent jump in online sales. Projections for 2017 are nearly as high. However, to prepare for the mad rush that is the holiday season, you need to get started now.…

Retail Giants Accused of Trucker Exploitation
July 5, 2017 at 11:13 am

USA Today recently published a report stating that Target, Costco, Hewlett-Packard and other big-name retailers have benefited from California port trucking companies that forced their drivers into debt, made them work up to 20 hours a day, and sometimes paid them pennies per hour. Retailers and manufacturers usually rely on subcontractors to move their products…

UPS to Add Surcharges for Holiday Deliveries
June 20, 2017 at 10:21 am

United Parcel Service (UPS) will levy peak surcharges to U.S. residential packages for the holiday season, an unprecedented move by the shipping giant to pay for rising costs. The charges, ranging from 27 cents to 97 cents per package, will be applied to individual and commercial customers shipping to U.S. residences in November and December, UPS…

'The Great Returns Race' Benchmark Q1 2017
June 16, 2017 at 3:46 pm

United Parcel Service (UPS) will levy peak surcharges to U.S. residential packages for the holiday season, an unprecedented move by the shipping giant to pay for rising costs. The charges, ranging from 27 cents to 97 cents per package, will be applied to individual and commercial customers shipping to U.S. residences in November and December, UPS […]