DHL emerging as a shipping option for e-retailers

Since absorbing the ground shipment operations of Airborne Express last year, DHL has emerged as a competitive player in the market of shipping small parcels from retailers to consumers, experts say.

DHL, whose roots are in international courier services, now offers a slate of delivery services targeted at the U.S. as well as international markets.

Its growth in the U.S. market is raising competition among the established shipping services companies Fedex Corp. and UPS, particularly for retailers who spend a lot on shipping small parcels to their customers, experts say. "For retailers that live by small parcels, this a very exciting opportunity to get real savings and position themselves for the next level of growth in the industry," says David Doran, global director of transportation solutions for A.T. Kearney Procurement Solutions, a logistics services unit of consultants A.T. Kearney.

DHL’s new US-based web site, DHL-USA.com, which launched earlier this year, offers online shipment tracking as well as access to several new service features. Among its new services are DHL@home, formerly airborne@home, through which DHL will pick up a retailer’s shipments and forward them to a U.S. Postal Service facility for local delivery to a customer’s address.

DHL is building a direct presence in retail stores. It operates shipping centers inside of all OfficeMax stores in the U.S. (except in Hawaii), where small businesses can drop off products for shipment while shopping for business supplies.

Earlier this month, DHL announced an exclusive arrangement to provide shipping services for QuickDrop International, a growing chain of locations that accept items to be listed and sold on eBay.com.