Ryder System, Inc. has acquired MXD Group, an e-commerce fulfillment provider, for $120 million.
Miami-based
Ryder said the deal will give it a larger e-commerce
fulfillment network, positioning it as the second largest last-mile
delivery provider of big and bulky goods across the United States and Canada. XPO Logistics is the largest provider of last-mile logistics for heavy goods in North America.
Consulting firm AlixPartners published a report last month that said a survey of over 1,000 consumers found resistance to buying large or bulky products online is waning.
Ryder
said it has acquired “109 MXD e-commerce fulfillment facilities across
the U.S. and Canada, including 21 MXD-operated cross dock hubs, 16
dedicated operations, and a network of 72 third-party agent facilities.
The acquisition also includes proprietary order management and
visibility technology, which features real-time tracking and a customer
service portal for rapid response and resolution.”
As a result of the deal, Ryder's network now includes 121 e-commerce hubs covering over 95 percent of the U.S. and Canada within a two-day delivery timeframe. "The network can serve any industry, as it can handle
big and bulky products as well as small and large parcels," Ryder said.
Ryder added how its “last mile solution for retailers and shippers of big and bulky
products will include home delivery and white glove installation with
multiple tiers of service and a network of carriers throughout the U.S.
and Canada.”
Commenting on the deal, Ryder Chairman and CEO Robert Sanchez said the it "will enable many of the businesses we
serve to better meet their customers’ demands, which are constantly and
rapidly changing amid a heightened e-commerce era.”
The AlixPartners
study suggested, “Furniture sellers will need to move quickly to devise
offers that include free shipping and develop the infrastructure needed
to assure prompt delivery. Last-mile carriers with capacity to handle
oversized, non-standard package sizes have an opportunity to fill the
gap opened up by the largest logistics providers’ reluctance - or outright
refusal - to handle those packages.”