E-commerce

With a focus on expanding access to its last mile delivery network, the United States Postal Service (USPS) said this week that shippers of all sizes will now be able to access more than 18,000 USPS delivery destination units (DDU) across the country.

The company stated that FedEx package standard list rates for U.S., U.S. export, and U.S. import services will increase by an average of 5.9%. And it said that rates for FedEx Ground Economy, FedEx Ground Multiweight, FedEx International Premium, and FedEx International Priority Direct Distribution will also head up.

As B2B buying behaviors evolve, many organizations plateau—not for lack of demand, but because their order and e-commerce systems still operate in siloes.

The deal promises faster returns, lower costs, better customer experiences, and improved sustainability.

Mugsy, which operates primarily in direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales, struggled with inventory inaccuracies and parcel shipping delays, impacting its growth. After switching to Ryder and its acquired 3PL, Whiplash, Mugsy saw immediate improvements in operational accuracy, shipping cost management, and customer satisfaction.

Quarterly consolidated revenue, at $21.2 billion, fell 2.7% annually, and basic earnings per share, at $1.55 (short of Wall Street estimates of $1.57), fell $0.24, or 13.4%, annually. Total operating profit, at $1.8 billion, decreased 6.3% annually. 

June retail sales, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading day differences but not price changes, came in at $720.1 billion, up 0.6% over May’s $715.5 billion and up 3.9% annually. And total retail sales, from April through June, posted a 4.1% annual gain compared to the same period a year ago.

Chattanooga, Tenn.-based 3PL Kenco recently announced it has officially introduced its Contract Packaging Division, which it describes as a strategic investment covering secondary packaging that will “further simplify customers’ operations and strengthen Kenco’s position as a one-stop shop for supply chain management.”

The move targets low-cost shipments from companies like Shein and Temu, which have relied on the rule to avoid tariffs.

A new report issued by Brookfield, Wis.-based supply chain consultancy and global third-party logistics (3PL) research provider Armstrong & Associates, in collaboration with the National Home Delivery Association, examines the current state of a key aspect of the last-mile delivery market, big and bulky last-mile delivery.

The de minimis exemption, which allowed shipments under $800 sent from China and Hong Kong to the U.S. to not be subject to tariffs, and officially came to an end on May 2. With this change now in effect, it requires all shipments from these regions—regardless of value—to undergo full customs processing and be subject to applicable tariffs, as noted in various reports.

Atlanta-based Stord, provider of high-volume fulfillment services and e-commerce technology for leading brands, announced today it has completed its acquisition of Atlanta-based Ware2Go, a UPS subsidiary comprised of a nationwide network of certified warehouses and technology to streamline fulfillment across sales channels, and a flexible business model that eliminates long-term contracts and order minimums. 

Executives from San Diego-based parcel consultancy Shipware offered up some observations on this development, with Amazon and FedEx renewing business ties, following a June 2019 breakup, in which FedEx announced it made a “strategic decision” not to renew the FedEx Express U.S. contract with Amazon, as it focused on serving the broader e-commerce market.

DHL Supply Chain described this deal as a strategic move to further enhance its e-commerce capabilities, as well as extend its services to small and midsized customers. IDS Fulfillment brings more than 1.3 million square-feet of multi-customer warehouse and distribution space throughout the U.S.

A report recently issued by ShipMatrix, a subsidiary of Warrendale, Pa.-based SJ Consulting, points to an increasing shift in the parcel marketplace that is having an impact on the parcel duopoly of FedEx and UPS.