Sales Down For China Malls, Could Turn to Same-Day Delivery

When you think of e-commerce, the US has always been the primary country that is spearheading online growth. Not anymore. China's e-commerce is thriving, even to the point that mall stores are seeing the effects of it.

Mall and restaurant traffic is seeing a decline in China reported the Internet Retailer via Bloomberg News. Traffic decreased in November, which is not a good sign as the holiday shopping season begins that month. The article stated it is due to a surge of online shopping activity, according to Baidu, operator of China’s dominant search engine, and JD.com. China's wealthy shoppers are opting to go online to buy more pricier items. Less traffic translates into less sales. This is the time that retailers look forward to, even to where this season helps to compensate for any revenue losses during the course of the year.

Online retail is expected to grow to $500 billion by 2018 and China's leading retailer Alibaba is the front runner there, which also offer Same-Day Delivery in several big cities. The online retailer is the Amazon of China, even generated $18 billion in sales in one day during November. The numbers attest to the lower traffic in malls, as more and more shoppers are comfortable with buying online there. It is convenient, easy and saves our most valued commodity--time.

“China’s two-speed scenario is having a major impact on the country’s retail industry,” said Jason Yu, general manager for China at consumer research firm Kantar Worldpanel. He went on to say, “This massive explosion of online sales growth is being fueled by increasing diversification in the categories purchased online, as well as huge gains in imported products and consumers taking advantage of promotions.” One of the major attractions to online retail is that consumers have access right in the palm of their hands to real-time holiday discounts. With their mobile device, a shopper can look for online deals and instantly take advantage of them.

The question is then how will malls be able to match the surge of online growth, which shows no signs of slowing down? One strategy US department store leaders Macy's took in the US was to create the omnichannels necessary to bridge their online store with its' physical ones via same-day delivery. Macy's partnered with start-up delivery company Deliv and launched same-day delivery in multiple major US cities last year. Deliv uses a crowd-sourcing approach and delivers in-store products from Macy mall locations to online shoppers.

Macy's started its' same-day delivery program in San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Jose, Seattle, Houston, Chicago, New Jersey, and Washington DC. Its' sister company Bloomingdale's rolled out the service in San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Jose, and Chicago as well. With at least 885 mall locations, Macy's has been able to use its' store volume to its' advantage, utilizing them essentially as warehouses to fulfill online orders from. Nordstrom's has engaged in some same-day delivery also.

Like Macy's, it makes sense for mall retailers to turn to same-day delivery to improve sales. Malls can shift with the trend of getting product to the customer, versus the customer coming to the mall when they don't have to. A retailer can partner with a Same-Day Courier like A-1 Express to pick up from mall locations and then deliver to the shopper. The Washington DC Courier has a national footprint and can assist malls in regaining their shoppers back.

Reference: 12.12.16, www.internetretailer.com, Bloomberg News, China’s e-commerce boom shrinks mall shopping traffic

Sales Down For China Malls, Could Turn to Same-Day Delivery

When you think of e-commerce, the US has always been the primary country that is spearheading online growth. Not anymore. China's e-commerce is thriving, even to the point that mall stores are seeing the effects of it.

Mall and restaurant traffic is seeing a decline in China reported the Internet Retailer via Bloomberg News. Traffic decreased in November, which is not a good sign as the holiday shopping season begins that month. The article stated it is due to a surge of online shopping activity, according to Baidu, operator of China’s dominant search engine, and JD.com. China's wealthy shoppers are opting to go online to buy more pricier items. Less traffic translates into less sales. This is the time that retailers look forward to, even to where this season helps to compensate for any revenue losses during the course of the year.

Online retail is expected to grow to $500 billion by 2018 and China's leading retailer Alibaba is the front runner there, which also offer Same-Day Delivery in several big cities. The online retailer is the Amazon of China, even generated $18 billion in sales in one day during November. The numbers attest to the lower traffic in malls, as more and more shoppers are comfortable with buying online there. It is convenient, easy and saves our most valued commodity--time.

“China’s two-speed scenario is having a major impact on the country’s retail industry,” said Jason Yu, general manager for China at consumer research firm Kantar Worldpanel. He went on to say, “This massive explosion of online sales growth is being fueled by increasing diversification in the categories purchased online, as well as huge gains in imported products and consumers taking advantage of promotions.” One of the major attractions to online retail is that consumers have access right in the palm of their hands to real-time holiday discounts. With their mobile device, a shopper can look for online deals and instantly take advantage of them.

The question is then how will malls be able to match the surge of online growth, which shows no signs of slowing down? One strategy US department store leaders Macy's took in the US was to create the omnichannels necessary to bridge their online store with its' physical ones via same-day delivery. Macy's partnered with start-up delivery company Deliv and launched same-day delivery in multiple major US cities last year. Deliv uses a crowd-sourcing approach and delivers in-store products from Macy mall locations to online shoppers.

Macy's started its same-day delivery program in San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Jose, Seattle, Houston, Chicago, New Jersey, and Washington DC. Its sister company Bloomingdale's rolled out the service in San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Jose, and Chicago as well. With at least 885 mall locations, Macy's has been able to use its' store volume to its' advantage, utilizing them essentially as warehouses to fulfill online orders from. Nordstrom's has engaged in some same-day delivery also.

Like Macy's, it makes sense for mall retailers to turn to same-day delivery to improve sales. Malls can shift with the trend of getting product to the customer, versus the customer coming to the mall when they don't have to. A retailer can partner with a Same-Day Courier like A-1 Express to pick up from mall locations and then deliver to the shopper. The Washington DC Courier has a national footprint and can assist malls in regaining their shoppers back.

Reference: 12.12.16, www.internetretailer.com, Bloomberg News, China’s e-commerce boom shrinks mall shopping traffic

Google Express Expands To Fresh Food Same-Day Deliveries

As eBay sits out of the same-day delivery race for now, Google clearly has its' sites on Amazon. The retail giant's most recent move proves it. Since 2013, Google has been aggressively involved in express delivery withing hours of everyday online products, along with certain foods. Now, same-day grocery delivery of fresh foods is next.

CNet reported this week that Google will be testing same-day grocery delivery later this year. This is a trailblazer for Google, as this will be the first time its' service, Google Express, will be tackling the delivery of fruits, vegetables and other fresh foods. The key is these types of groceries is they will have to be delivered quickly. Google already delivers on mass scale general products within hours, and fresh foods won't be any different. Testing will begin in the San Francisco Bay Area, partnering with large grocery store chains like Costco and Whole Foods.

The move is strategically beneficial for both Google and partnering grocery stores. Physical store chains are able to tap into the market of shoppers that don't enjoy dealing with finding a good parking space and waiting in long checkout lines just to get some apples and a loaf of bread. Whole Foods currently offers fast delivery for food trays and volume food orders for corporation having business luncheons and events. Google Express grocery shopping online will appeal to younger shoppers also, especially college students.

Wal-Mart, like Costco and Whole Foods, already is involved in same-day delivery. The robust retail leader has the service in a number of US cities, as well as in Canada. Wal-Mart offers free same-day service in Canada to aggressively compete against Amazon.ca in that area. As far as further same-day delivery plans, Wal-Mart does have its' neighborhood market stores, which it rolled out a few years ago. These small, close-proxy stores can act as fulfillment centers for online orders. Wal-MarttoGo is also another service option, allowing shoppers to order online and then pick up their orders from a nearby participating store.

Online retail is forecasted to reach over $500 billion by 2018 and delivering groceries will have its' impact on this expected growth. Google's same-day grocery launch will grow, along with its' same-day and overnight delivery in other major US cities. Just this week, Google Express expanded into five more Midwest states, including Michigan, Indiana, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Ohio. Los Angeles, Washington DC, Chicago, and Boston already have Google Express. Amazon's same-day grocery delivery service that is available in Seattle, Los Angeles and other cities. As its' free same-day service expands from Seattle and California, with the right numbers, this will probably be the case for delivering groceries too.

Google's new fresh food deliveries is sure to peak the interest in other e-retailers and brick-and-mortar retailers who are considering doing the same. Whether it's food or not, same-day delivery is here to stay. A Same-Day Courier like A-1 Express can assist any retailer with implementing the same-day delivery program they need. The Washington DC Courier has a national footprint to help large retailers obtain a service that can be used in any of their markets.

Reference: 8.18.15,www.cnet.com, Richard Nieva, Google to test same-day grocery delivery service

Uber Dropped Same-Day Delivery, Will Sidecar?

While some companies have found what they are looking for, others simply missed the mark. It just didn't work as expected, and an even robust online retailer eBay stopped to rethink its model for same-day delivery. Ridesharing companies are jumping into same-day programs, like the latest Sidecar. It has been testing out same-day delivery in the San Francisco Bay Area for the last six months and it has been successful.

In a Vantor News article, Sidecar stated, "During our test period, Sidecar drivers earned 75% more when they delivered both people and packages. Riders also reap the benefits of this people and packages combo because there will be more drivers available, lower wait times and even lower prices." The company expects the service to be 50% of their business this year. Sidecar touts that it has found the model is the fastest and lowest cost approach. Deliveries are even cheaper then other providers due to application programming interface, which cuts the cost down to a fifth of the price, and delivery time by half.

Within the article, Sidecar mentions EAT24, one of its pilot partners, utilized the service and experienced double in revenue. The restaurant's food delivery time was also cut 50% and in the end, Sidecar drivers even made more money. In essence, it's as simple as Sidecar put it in the article, "By combining people and packages, Sidecar offers companies same-day delivery at prices that are 80% cheaper than traditional services, and cuts delivery times in half."

With these testing phase results, Sidecar Deliveries has been launched, a new program that allows third party companies to use Sidecar vehicles to deliver their items. "Same-day delivery will represent half of our business by the end of 2015. Our vision is that one day any business will be able to take an order and get it to the customer in an hour, and Sidecar will be the service that powers this capability," Sidecar stated. Sidecar currently has ride-sharing services in San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Seattle, Chicago, Charlotte, Boston and Washington, DC. More than likely, these are the first cities to experience the roll out.

Uber, another ride-sharing transporter company, tried its' hand at same-day delivery. Uber currently offers car service in 250 cities in 50 countries. It's app is available in Asia, North America, and Europe. The easy-to-use app links drivers and customers that need rides, acting as a convenient taxi service. Uber ESSENTIALS was launched August of last year in parts of Washington, DC, offering shoppers over 60 items, such as chips, deodorant, batteries, and popcorn. It was only an experiment in the area, which didn't not last. Uber pulled back on the service. Same-day delivery helps retailers move their products online and even partner with a Washington DC Courier to perform fast deliveries for them.

Uber didn't last, yet will Sidecar? Time will tell whether Sidecar will have the same results any where. There are many key performance indicators Sidecar has located, namely costs, to help the service be sustainable. Every city offers new demographics and economies of scale as well. Sidecar has its' model. Some e-retailers and brick-and-mortar companies use a same-day courier like A-1 Express for same-day delivery also as a service model. Regardless, same-day delivery will continue to boom as long as online retail thrives.

Reference: 2.9.15, Vator News, Steven Loeb, Sidecar launches its own same-day delivery service

Postal Service Expands Metro Post To Washington DC

It may be a long shot for the Postal Service or it could be the best move for the mail company with expanding same-day delivery. The Washington Post recently reported that the US Postal Service has announced expansion of its' same-day delivery service Metro Post into Washington DC. Currently, Metro Post is being tested in New York and San Francisco. Both are cities that many big name same-day programs such as Google, Amazon, eBay and others roll out the service.

With Metro Post, shoppers can place orders from participating retailers by 2 pm and receive their items between 4 and 6 pm the same day. This is essentially what other web-based retailers offer with same-day delivery and the products vary. Google offers same-day courier service for hundreds of retail products, as does Amazon, in New York. EBay scaled back its service to retool, yet it launched the service in New York a number of weeks ago. Uber delivers same-day groceries, which Amazon does as well.

The article discussed how e-commerce companies can leverage the scale of the USPS, as it has the greatest access to consumer mailboxes. This is what sets it a part from other big delivery companies like FedEx and UPS. This is by far a huge advantage against its' competitors. Only the USPS can utilize residential mailboxes for delivery. It would behoove the mail giant to innovate and see how it can capitalize on something only it can provide.

Many companies are utilizing same-day delivery to gain an advantage within their business markets. Whether a physical store retailer like Macy's, or a web-based e-retailer like Google, the goal is creating a seamless offer of product and service online. Omni-channel commerce merges the two and many retailers are engaged with same-day delivery to make this happen. Even if online retailers can't perform the actual deliveries, they partner with a same-day courier like A-1 Express to do it.

It has been losing billions of dollars for quite a few year now, especially $5.5 billion in fiscal 2014, even with workforce cutbacks, facility consolidations and other cost-cutting decisions. Former US Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe talked about in a government meeting receiving the permission for the USPS to seek after delivering within other business sectors like groceries, because the opportunities are there. Delivery innovation is what the USPS has its' sights on and it is a legitimate avenue for it.

With expanding into Washington DC, Metro Post is proving to be what the US Postal Service is banking on for growth. More than likely, more US cities are to come if it works. Another plus is it has the operational facilities and vehicle fleet to deliver products anywhere. It's a matter of changing what its' driver puts in the mailbox or at the front door, from electronics to household items. If Metro Post achieves like the USPS expects it to, competitors will need an optimal delivery system. A-1 Express is a Washington DC courier that retailers can use to contend to the mailing company on a national scale and deliver quickly.

Reference: 2.6.15, Washington Post, Tige Savage, The U.S. Postal Service is throwing a Hail Mary: Same-day delivery