FedEx Strikes Deals to Expand E-Commerce Services
FedEx Corp. made several moves in recent weeks to build its national and international services, particularly in the growing e-commerce sector, through investments and partnerships.
On Oct. 20, the parcel giant announced a deal between FedEx Office and eBay to launch an eBay Valet Drop-Off Program at more than 1,600 retail stores in the coming months.
EBay account holders would bring their items into a FedEx Office store, where a store employee verifies the condition and eligibility, then packs and ships items to the nearest eBay Valet processing center to be photographed, listed and sold, according to FedEx. Once the item sells, customers receive payment via PayPal.
Among the top-selling items it expects to sell are smartphones, tablets, small appliances, golf clubs, designer handbags, shoes, bicycles, musical instruments and drum sets. FedEx said the customer would pocket up to 80% of the earnings, and it would keep the rest.
If successful, the e-commerce venture could boost volumes at FedEx Express, Ground and Freight.
Meanwhile, the company also made a pair of moves to increase capacity at two facilities to handle parcels and freight in Europe and the United States.
FedEx will invest $1.5 billion (1.4 billion euros) to double the size of its distribution hub at Charles de Gaulle International Airport. The Memphis, Tenneesee-based company also will open a 248,000-square-foot facility near Atlanta next summer.
In the French capital, FedEx plans to open a package-sorting facility and create up to 400 jobs, according to an Oct. 18 announcement. The expansion will add 270,000 square feet to a complex that totals more than 1 million square feet. The location in the Parisian suburbs is the second-biggest FedEx terminal after the “SuperHub” in Memphis..
Construction will begin next summer, and the facility is scheduled to open in 2019.
“This investment is part of the company’s network-expansion strategy, creating more capacity and enabling more business connections in Europe and around the world,” FedEx Express Europe President David Binks said. “This new expansion, coupled with the recent TNT acquisition, supports the evolving needs of our customers and the global marketplace while increasing our ability to support trends like cross-border e-commerce.”
Dutch firm TNT soon will open a distribution center in the Ile de France region to improve connectivity among France, Europe and the rest of the world, he added.
On the same day, FedEx announced that a new distribution center on Frank Amerson Jr. Parkway in Macon, Georgia, will open in July.
“The new facility will replace an existing, smaller facility in Macon enabling us to continue to meet and exceed customer demands in the area," spokeswoman Allie Addoms said. "Exact staffing needs have yet to be determined, but the facility will employ a mix of full -and part-time employees. We will add to the workforce as necessary to support increased demand for service in the area.”
FedEx Corp ranks No. 2 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest U.S and Canadian for-hire carriers.
