Online Shopping Drives Growth in Demand For Faster, Cheaper Local Delivery Services By Daniel P. Bearth up local hubs to provide one-hour delivery in cities across Senior Features Writer the United States. In the 2016 edition of Transport Topics’ Top 50 s online sales continue to soar, so have Logistics Companies, we explore what the growth the expectations of consumers for goods of online commerce means to some of the largest to be delivered quickly and cheaply. logistics service providers in North America, including Fueling an increase in on-demand top-ranked UPS Inc., which has invested in several delivery services is Amazon.com, the delivery startups, and FedEx Corp., which last year Seattle-basedA online bookseller that has over the past acquired Genco, a distribution firm that handles order two decades morphed into a $100 billion-a-year global fulfillment and manages returned goods for Internet storehouse and potentially a provider of logistics services retailers. in its own right. While the companies have made investments to Since 2014, investors have poured more than $1 billion enhance their package delivery networks to handle into companies, such as California-based Postmates additional online commerce, they don’t yet see enough and Deliv, that use freelance drivers to provide same- demand from consumers to expand same-day or on- day pickup and delivery of merchandise and packages. demand delivery service. At the same time, Google and other high-tech firms On the other hand, the beginnings of a new and are developing driverless trucks and robotic delivery radically different transportation network appear to be vehicles in an effort to lower costs. taking shape. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has made it clear that he is “People are willing to pay for convenience,” Holger willing to try innovative ways to speed up deliveries, Luedorf, senior vice president of Postmates, told Transport including the use of drones. The company has established Topics. “In two or three years, we expect delivery in one more than 100 regional fulfillment centers and is setting hour to be a very common experience.” ABOUT THE TOP 50 LIST The 2016 Top 50 Logistics Companies list is a joint project of Transport Topics and Armstrong & Associates Inc. Logistics is defined as the procurement of transportation for shippers and includes services such as freight brokerage, air and ocean freight forwarding, warehousing and distribution and dedicated contract carriage. Companies are ranked on the basis of actual or estimated net revenue and include a description of services, names of top executives, key customers and industry expertise. Senior Features Writer Daniel P. Bearth coordinated the project and was assisted by Brandon Green. Armstrong & Associates, a leading third-party logistics market research firm, provided revenue estimates and additional data used to rank companies in each of five logistics sectors. Firms wishing to participate in the 2017 Top 50 list can contact Transport Topics at [email protected]. Transport Topics’ Top 50 Logistics Companies is sponsored online by Rank Rank Net Revenue Gross Revenue Company % Change % Change Employees Industry Expertise/Key Customers Description of Services 2016 2015 (in millions) (in millions) 1 UPS Supply Chain Solutions $3,108e 2.6 $5,900 2.5 12,700 Aerospace and defense, consumer Air and ocean freight forwarding, Atlanta $3,030 $5,758e NA packaged goods, computers and custom brokerage, dedicated contract 1 electronics, industrial and manufacturing, carriage, freight brokerage, inventory (UPS Inc.) government, health care, retail management and packaging, order David Abney, CEO Customers include: NA fulfillment, returned goods management, supply chain consulting, transportation www.ups.com management, warehousing and distribution XPO Logistics Inc. $2,841e 149.9 $5,536e 76.3 NA Aerospace and defense, automotive, Air and ocean freight forwarding, custom $1,160 $3,140 NA building products, chemicals, consumer brokerage, dedicated contract carriage, 2 Greenwich, Conn. packaged goods, computers and freight brokerage, intermodal and (NYSE: XPO) electronics, durable goods, industrial drayage, inventory management and and manufacturing, fashion and apparel, packaging, order fulfillment, returned Bradley Jacobs, Chairman and CEO food and beverage, forest and paper goods management, supply chain www.xpo.com products, government, health care, consulting, transportation management, office equipment, oil and gas, publishing, warehousing and distribution retail, rubber and plastic products, telecommunications Customers include: Boeing, ASOS, Carrefour, Comcast, Danone, Home Depot, Marks & Spencer, Masco Cabinetry, Perdue, Sears, Siemens Healthcare, United Technologies Corp., Verizon 2 J.B. Hunt Transport Services $2,660e 2.1 $5,816 0.3 NA Aerospace and defense, automotive, Dedicated contract carriage, freight Lowell, Ark. $2,605e $5,799 NA building products, chemicals, consumer brokerage, intermodal and drayage, 3 packaged goods, computers and supply chain consulting, transportation (Nasdaq: JBHT) electronics, durable goods, industrial management John Roberts, CEO and manufacturing, fashion and apparel, food and beverage, forest and paper www.jbhunt.com products, government, health care, office equipment, oil and gas, publishing, retail, rubber and plastic products, telecommunications Customers include: BJ's Wholesale Club, ConAgra, Cornerstone Brands, Costco, D&W Fine Pack, General Mills, Goodyear, Mission Foods, Target, Tesla Motors 4 C.H. Robinson Worldwide $2,268 6.4 $13,476 -4.4 13,159 Aerospace and defense, automotive, Air and ocean freight forwarding, Eden Prairie, Minn. $2,131 $14,093 11,521 building products, chemicals, consumer custom brokerage, dedicated 4 packaged goods, computers and contract carriage, freight brokerage, (Nasdaq: CHRW) electronics, durable goods, industrial intermodal and drayage, inventory John Wiehoff, Chairman and CEO and manufacturing, fashion and apparel, management and packaging, returned food and beverage, forest and paper goods management, supply chain www.chrobinson.com/en/us/ products, government, health care, consulting, transportation management, office equipment, oil and gas, publishing, warehousing and distribution retail, rubber and plastic products, telecommunications Customers include: NA e = estimate NA = Not Applicable or Not Available In cooperation with: 2015 numbers printed in purple Transport Topics’ Top 50 Logistics Companies is sponsored online by Rank Rank Net Revenue Gross Revenue Company % Change % Change Employees Industry Expertise/Key Customers Description of Services 2016 2015 (in millions) (in millions) 5 Expeditors International of Washington $2,188 10.4 $6,617 0.8 15,397 Aerospace and defense, automotive, Air and ocean freight forwarding, Seattle $1,981 $6,565 14,659 computers and electronics, fashion and cross-border services, custom 5 apparel, food and beverage, health care, brokerage, order fulfillment, returned (Nasdaq: EXPD) oil and gas, retail goods management, transportation Jeffrey Musser, CEO Customers include: NA management, warehousing and distribution www.expeditors.com 3 Ryder Supply Chain Solutions $1,925e -10.8 $2,443e -0.7 NA Aerospace and defense, automotive, Dedicated contract carriage, freight Miami $2,157 $2,461 NA 6 building products, consumer packaged brokerage, inventory management and (Ryder System Inc.) goods, computers and electronics, packaging, order fulfillment, returned Robert Sanchez, Chairman and CEO durable goods, industrial and goods management, supply chain manufacturing, food and beverage, forest consulting, transportation management, www.ryder.com and paper products, health care, office warehousing and distribution equipment, oil and gas, publishing, retail, telecommunications Customers include: NA 6 DHL Supply Chain $1,815 0 $3,300 0 NA Automotive, chemicals, consumer Order fulfillment, supply chain Westerville, Ohio $1,815e $3,300e 47,000 packaged goods, computers and consulting, transportation management, 7 electronics, durable goods, industrial warehousing and distribution (Deutsche Post DHL, Bonn, Germany) and manufacturing, food and beverage, Scott Sureddin, CEO, North America health care, retail www.exel.com Customers include: 7-Eleven, Bayer, Bristol Myers Squibb, Chrysler, Coty, Energizer, Ford Motor, General Electric, Hershey, International Paper, PepsiCo, Home Depot, Novartis, Volkswagen, Zimmer 10 FedEx Corp. $1,625e 10.9 $3,178 9.7 NA Automotive, computers and electronics, Air and ocean freight forwarding, custom 8 Memphis, Tenn. $1,465e $2,896e 10,885 health care, retail brokerage, order fulfillment, returned Customers include: NA goods management, transportation (NYSE: FDX) management, warehousing and Craig Simon, CEO FedEx SupplyChain distribution James Muhs Sr., CEO, FedEx Trade Networks www.fedex.com 7 Ceva Logistics $1,570e -8.5 $2,452 -6.3 NA Automotive, consumer packaged goods, Air and ocean freight forwarding, custom Houston $1,715e $2,618e NA computers and electronics, industrial and brokerage, freight brokerage, order 9 manufacturing, health care, retail fulfillment, returned goods management, (Ceva Group, Hoofddorp, Netherlands) Customers include: NA supply chain consulting, transportation Xavier Urbain, CEO management, warehousing and distribution www.cevalogistics.com 8 Americold Logistics $1,555e -8.3 NA NA NA NA Supply chain consulting, transportation Atlanta $1,696 NA 11,000 Customers include: NA management, warehousing and 10 distribution Fred Boehler, President and COO www.americold.com