The last mile has been a hotbed of innovation and instability amid pandemic-driven changes as the final cog in the enormous supply chain machine. For years, the last mile of logistics has been considered as a cost base rather than an income generator, but it is finally getting its due as retailers and carriers increasingly scrutinize the last mile.
What will the final leg of logistics look like in 2022? At The Future of Supply Chain, a FreightWaves in-person experience, we’ll be delving into this and other industry issues. Register here to join us on May 9-10, 2022 at the Rogers Convention Center in Northwest Arkansas.
The final mile will be quick –– within minutes. Products have been moving at the speed of Prime since Amazon introduced the speedy delivery option in 2005, and the pace is only increasing.
Retailers of all sizes are using distribution and fulfillment centers to map their goods directly onto the locations of their consumers, allowing carriers such as UPS and the Postal Service to offer deliveries in hours rather than days.
Some businesses are even thinking faster. A slew of businesses, including Jokr, Gorillas, and Getir, are delivering food and groceries in less than a half-hour. Even larger businesses, such as DoorDash and Instacart, are getting in on the act, with deliveries taking less than 15 minutes.
The final stretch will be adaptable. Fulfillment is no more a one-size-fits-all proposition: retailers are providing a host of options that allow customers to receive their products in the way they like, including same-day curbside pickup, buy online, pick up in-store, home delivery, and more. Customers can even fly their orders in via drone at some businesses.
White-label delivery services such as Walmart Go Local and Fulfillment by Amazon enable merchants to leverage additional delivery capacity, infusing their fleets with additional vans and drivers to fulfill consumers’ flexible expectations. This adaptability is a two-way street, with more brands emphasizing product returns and reverse logistics.
The final leg will be automated. The days of fleet operators’ hand-drawing routes are long gone. Today, automation produces efficient delivery routes based on mountains of tracking and inventory data, eliminating the need for physical labor.
And it’s not just routing and tracking that will be automated. Trucks and delivery vans are already self-driving as more merchants and carriers collaborate with autonomous fleet providers such as Gatik and Nuro.
The last mile will be self-sustaining. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the transportation industry accounted for a whopping 29 percent of all U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in 2020. That may not be the case for long, as merchants pursuing sustainability and ESG efforts attempt to revamp their supply chains.
As logistics seeks to reduce its carbon footprint, numerous fleet manufacturers have embraced sustainable features such as zero-emissions trips, carbon-negative deliveries, and electric-powered motors, while drone delivery promises an environmentally friendly alternative to ground-based last-mile supply lines.
The last mile will consist of a variety of activities. However, it will remain in the thoughts of retailers, transporters, and customers.
