Amazon one-day delivery already sees shipments to the majority of US consumers - 72% of consumers, to be exact. This was found in a new report by RBC Capital Markets. According to the research, Amazon delivers goods in one day to more than 95% of US shoppers in 16 of the wealthiest and most populated states including Washington D.C.
RBC Capital Markets explains that shop-level distribution is still the fastest way for a consumer to acquire a product. However, Amazon’s continued rollout of same-day and next-day delivery capabilities continues to reduce that historical competitive barrier. It represents a growing risk to retailers who are too often fighting yesterday’s (two-day) delivery wars.
The study highlights the speed of Amazon’s strategy to cut their delivery time in half for US consumers. Amazon will invest $800 million to improve their delivery promise in the second quarter of 2019. They are citing their 20-year history in the logistics field as an asset and a springboard to change the face of retail in the US.
Last week, Walmart was forced to follow Amazon with the possible introduction of one-day free shipping. Walmart is currently still offering free two-day shipping on orders above $35. This shows that for every Amazon move there is a wider ripple effect across the retail industry.
Amazon might be driving a new retail standard but the one size fits all approach doesn’t work in every case. Leading marketplaces such as Etsy and Notonthehighstreet refuted the idea of a faster delivery option being their winning formula. The duo emphasised on the fact that the delivery speed and the nature of a product need to be considered before next-day delivery is offered to a customer.
