ATLANTA, Jan. 29, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —UPS Saturday and Sunday delivery volume will significantly expand in 2020 as network changes add more sortation and delivery capacity for weekend services.Weekend network enhancements more than double Saturday residential and commercial delivery volumes by reaching an additional 40 million U.S. consumersUPS also offers economical Sunday delivery, helping merchants reach consumers in the majority of the U.S. with faster delivery.UPS is only integrated carrier offering Saturday package car pickup of all service levels and Saturday commercial delivery. Sunday pickup is available by contract.UPS® Extended Hours service expansion provides late night pickup and local next-day Ground delivery within 150 miles, ensuring next-day Ground delivery coverage to 98% of the contiguous U.S. population, up from 85%Service expansions help SMBs serve their customers more efficiently, expand into new markets, grow and competeUPS (NYSE:UPS) in 2020 will deliver more packages on more days of the week so merchants can get products to their customers sooner. The company today announced weekend network enhancements and expanded coverage of UPS® Extended Hours late night pickup for local next-day Ground delivery, now reaching 98% of the U.S. The improvements are strategically designed to give merchants, especially small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), increased speed and flexibility to get their products to their customers sooner.This year, UPS plans to expand network operations to provide residential deliveries seven days a week, meeting customers’ demands for Saturday and Sunday delivery within one to three days from order placement. According to a recent industry study1, more than half of consumers and online retailers choose fulfillment and delivery in under three days. These merchants are increasingly using speed of delivery to differentiate their total product, delivery time and transaction price offer to consumers.UPS is pulling forward spending on network time in transit improvements in 2020 to accelerate SMB growth initiatives. The company plans to triple the rate of improvement in 2020, when compared to gains made in 2019, resulting in making time-in-transit faster for 80% of residential and commercial customers in the United States.The company will more than double Saturday delivery volume in 2020, reaching an additional 40 million U.S. consumers. As a result of weekend enhancements, merchants have the flexibility to choose standard or economy shipping solutions for Saturday or Sunday delivery. UPS will initially offer an economy service for Sunday delivery and expand offerings throughout the year. Residential packages now delivered on Sunday would have previously arrived on the following Tuesday before network upgrades. UPS is the only integrated carrier providing Saturday pickup service for all service levels (International, Air, Ground and UPS SurePost®). UPS Ground® & UPS 3-Day Select® packages destined for the surrounding region will be advanced one day for Monday delivery. UPS also offers Sunday pickup services to customers on a contractual basis. The weekend service network was developed around consumers and shippers in high-density zip codes where nearly three-quarters of all Americans live.“Demand for faster delivery is a growing trend with the largest e-commerce shippers moving from two-day to one-day delivery,” said Kevin Warren, UPS Chief Marketing Officer. “Our network enhancements and weekend services give our customers industry-leading choice, convenience and speed to market.”UPS also expanded coverage of UPS® Extended Hours, providing industry-leading late night pickup for local next-day Ground delivery. The later pickup times allow merchants to reach 98% of the U.S. consumer population for next-day Ground delivery and enables shippers to process more orders in a day. The service is available to qualifying shippers by contract.Ecommerce orders spike late in the evening, so UPS Extended Hours service allows merchants to extend their daily cut-off time for processing orders tendered to UPS. The service also helps merchants manage rapid online order fulfillment and avoid lost sales due to online shopping cart abandonment. UPS® Extended Hours pickup service for next day local ground delivery also creates additional speed-to-market benefits for retailers. UPS Extended Hours and weekend services give merchants enhanced ship-from-store capability with fewer store stock outs, faster inventory turns, more efficient space utilization and increased productivity. UPS Extended Hours pickup service also helps merchants manage rapid online order fulfillment and avoid lost sales due to online shopping cart abandonment. UPS Extended Hours service for local next-day Ground service enables shippers to reach 98% of the U.S. consumer population on the next day.“We’re helping more B2B and B2C e-commerce shippers meet faster delivery expectations by giving them more time to fulfill customer orders,” said Warren.
“We will continue utilizing our vast delivery network more efficiently to give shippers the most coverage and faster delivery solutions, which reinforces our position as the provider of choice for ecommerce merchants.”As part of its long-term growth strategy, UPS remains committed to increasing its presence with SMB customers and helping them grow and compete globally. UPS’s network and broad portfolio of services such as the UPS Extended Hours pickup service, weekend service network expansion, and faster time-in-transit allow SMBs to access services previously only available to large companies, expand into new markets and service their customers more efficiently. Such services and solutions augment UPS’s full range of transportation and delivery service options such as more than 41,000 global UPS Access Point® locations by the end of 2020, UPS My Choice® for home and My Choice® for business and a comprehensive returns portfolio.To learn more about weekend pickup and delivery services, visit ups.com/weekend.1 2019 State of Shipping Report by ShippoAbout UPSUPS (NYSE: UPS) is a global leader in logistics, offering a broad range of solutions including transporting packages and freight; facilitating international trade, and deploying advanced technology to more efficiently manage the world of business. Headquartered in Atlanta, UPS serves more than 220 countries and territories worldwide. UPS was awarded America’s Best Customer Service company for Shipping and Delivery services by Newsweek magazine; Forbes Most Valuable Brand in Transportation; and top rankings on the JUST 100 list for social responsibility, the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, and the Harris Poll Reputation Quotient, among other prestigious rankings and awards. The company can be found on the web at ups.com or pressroom.ups.com and its corporate blog can be found at ups.com/longitudes The company’s sustainability eNewsletter, UPS Horizons, can be found at ups.com/sustainabilitynewsletter. To get UPS news direct, follow @UPS_News on Twitter. To ship with UPS, visit ups.com/ship.Vikki Conwell
404-828-6091
[email protected]
Bay Street News
