subject: A Retail Revolution Would Never Have Happened Without Reliable Delivery Services [print this page] Thanks to their ability to cut overheads to the bone, online retailers have shaken up the way we buy lots of things.
And observing the maxim 'if you can't beat them, join them', many manufacturers have also used the internet to cut out the middlemen, and offer their products direct to the public, effectively at wholesale prices.
But this streamlining of the supply chain for which technology has been responsible has also meant that an important new link has emerged that of the business-to-customer delivery service.
This new requirement has mainly been met by existing companies which over many years earned their living and established good reputations for themselves in parcel and goods delivery to business. They were in the fortunate position of having much of the infrastructure needed to refocus their operations already in place, in the shape of the manpower, vehicles and operating systems required.
They also had less tangible, yet important assets in their favour, in the form of close knowledge of the areas in which they operate, and already-established reputations for providing a largely trustworthy and reliable service, both built up over many years.
This has been a major factor in helping accelerate the move towards online selling and buying, because otherwise it would have been much more difficult for businesses trading purely over the internet to earn the trust of their customers.
The fact that people now know that they can place an order through a website with confidence knowing that, barring any major unforeseen circumstances, they can reliably expect to receive their goods when the seller promises them, certainly signifies that e-retailers have risen to the challenges which were inherent in their new business model.
Because only a few years ago, the range of products which people would buy through the old-fashioned term 'mail order' was quite narrow.
Today, though almost any product you can think of is available to buy somewhere online. The consequences of this for both businesses and individuals are broad and far-reaching. For many people, shopping now takes up far less time than it used to no bad thing in a world where demands on their time are constantly growing.
And right at the heart of this reshaping of our lives have been the hard-working men and women who collect, sort and deliver our mail and parcels. They have truly been a key part of nothing less than a shopping revolution.
