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If you are the owner of a retail store, then you have almost certainly noticed a trend that has developed in recent years: local delivery. More and more brick and mortar businesses have chosen to purchase their own vehicle and deliver their products to their customers’ doors, with the practice particularly popular amongst retailers of large items such as furniture.
If you have wondered whether such a venture might be suitable for your business, it’s worth considering the pros and cons before you take a leap…
PRO: Customers love the idea
A simple point to start, but an important one: retailers have chosen to offer local delivery because they have found that their customers are keen to use such an option. Local delivery offers flexibility to customers; they can browse a store and make a purchase, but not have to worry about the item fitting into their car, or carrying it with them for the rest of their shopping trip.
CON: Potential for accidents
It’s often easy to forget how dangerous driving can be, given that it’s an activity most of us do every day – but driving is inherently dangerous, especially when it comes to the potential for collisions with large trucks and similar vehicles. If you, or the driver you hire, gets into an accident with such a vehicle, then the ramifications can be severe; you may have to take months off work, rehabilitate an injury, and potentially even manage a claim with help from https://www.866attylaw.com or similar legal providers – risks that you have to be aware of if you intend to spend more time on the road in the near future.
PRO: Greater chance of competing with online stores
As https://www.smartinsights.com shows, ecommerce is a source of serious competition for retailers. Unfortunately, many of the advantages that ecommerce enjoys – such as lower overheads – are tough to compete with, but ecommerce also has an inherent disadvantage: long delivery times. As you will only be delivering in the local area, delivery times can be much shorter; in fact, you could even consider offering a same-day delivery service for items you have in stock, which is something very few ecommerce stores can do.
CON: Can be expensive to manage
Choosing to deliver locally is often an expensive undertaking; you will need to purchase a vehicle, buy insurance, and – if you do not have the time to complete deliveries yourself – you may need to hire additional staff. Many of these costs can be recouped if offering local delivery increases your volume of sales to customers who shop more due to the delivery service. However, you will still need to fund the costs of getting started.
In conclusion
The decision as to whether your retail business should offer local delivery is ultimately yours; as with most business decisions, there are upsides and downsides that have to be considered. However, whatever you decide, at least you can be confident that you have considered the matter from both sides, and that the choice you make is as well-informed as possible.