Exploring peer-to-peer last-mile delivery: an IKEA case study
(2022) MTTM05 20221Engineering Logistics
- Abstract
- The retail landscape has endured significant changes as a result of the e-commerce industry’s rapid growth over the last decade. As new channels are being added, traditional brick-andmortar retailers have transformed into multi- and omni-channel retailers in order to seize this growth opportunity. Last-mile delivery is stated to be one of the logistical processes mostly affected by the shift to omni-channel retailing. Changing shopping behaviors and rising customer expectations are putting higher pressure on e-retailers to reposition their delivery service offerings in order to provide a compelling value proposition. At the same time, last-mile delivery is frequently regarded as the most inefficient and expensive aspect of the supply... (More)
- The retail landscape has endured significant changes as a result of the e-commerce industry’s rapid growth over the last decade. As new channels are being added, traditional brick-andmortar retailers have transformed into multi- and omni-channel retailers in order to seize this growth opportunity. Last-mile delivery is stated to be one of the logistical processes mostly affected by the shift to omni-channel retailing. Changing shopping behaviors and rising customer expectations are putting higher pressure on e-retailers to reposition their delivery service offerings in order to provide a compelling value proposition. At the same time, last-mile delivery is frequently regarded as the most inefficient and expensive aspect of the supply chain, as well as the one with the most critical environmental concerns. Accordingly, there is an identified need to explore how omni-channel retailers can develop a last-mile delivery offer that is both appealing to customers and economically as well as environmentally sustainable.
To respond to urban logistical challenges in last-mile delivery, IKEA has identified the possibility of utilizing peer-to-peer delivery, as a subset of crowdsourcing, for the last mile. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to explore and recommend a peer-to-peer last-mile delivery solution for IKEA to test that takes into account customer expectations along with economical and environmental requirements. The purpose is addressed through an exploratory study with a design science research approach, involving a multiple case study for data collection. The analysis covers the mapping of the current last-mile delivery set-up for each case as well as identifying requirements of last-mile delivery, including external customer expectations along with internal economic and environmental requirements. Given the unexplored nature of peer-to-peer delivery in research and the scarcity of practical examples, the main theoretical contribution of this thesis is the exploration of how peer-to-peer delivery relates to identified requirements of last-mile delivery. Beyond the theoretical contribution, this thesis provides a real-world example of a peer-to-peer last-mile delivery solution developed for IKEA to test in an urban, omni-channel environment. The results of this thesis expects to inspire researchers and practitioners on how to develop and test a peer-to-peer last-mile delivery solution while also contributing to the generation of new knowledge and theoretical insights into the subject. However, this thesis calls for further research evaluating the performance of peer-to-peer last-mile delivery in comparison to other last-mile delivery alternatives as well as its relation to the most critical logistical challenges of last-mile delivery. (Less) - Popular Abstract
- Exploring a new low-cost last-mile delivery solution utilizing peer-to-peer for urban IKEA markets
The retail landscape and the consumer behaviors are rapidly changing – going from brick & mortar stores to full blown omni-channel retailing. Rising customer expectations combined with high delivery costs and critical environmental concerns of last-mile delivery are further putting higher pressure on omni-channel retailers to reposition their delivery service offerings. This thesis, on behalf of IKEA, explores a new last-mile delivery service utilizing peer-to-peer delivery, i.e. customers helping
customers, in addressing the logistical challenges of last-mile delivery.
The retail landscape has endured significant changes as a result... (More) - Exploring a new low-cost last-mile delivery solution utilizing peer-to-peer for urban IKEA markets
The retail landscape and the consumer behaviors are rapidly changing – going from brick & mortar stores to full blown omni-channel retailing. Rising customer expectations combined with high delivery costs and critical environmental concerns of last-mile delivery are further putting higher pressure on omni-channel retailers to reposition their delivery service offerings. This thesis, on behalf of IKEA, explores a new last-mile delivery service utilizing peer-to-peer delivery, i.e. customers helping
customers, in addressing the logistical challenges of last-mile delivery.
The retail landscape has endured significant changes as a result of the e-commerce industry’s rapid growth over the last decade. As new channels are being added, traditional brick & mortar retailers have transformed into multi- and omni-channel retailers in order to seize this growth opportunity. This shift to omni-channel retailing has highly affected the logistical process of last-mile delivery. Omni-channel retailers are facing challenges in trying to satisfy changing customer behaviors and rising customer expectations. At the same time, last-mile delivery is frequently regarded as the most inefficient and expensive aspect of the supply chain, as well as the one with the most critical environmental concerns. To respond to urban logistical challenges in last-mile delivery, IKEA has identified the possibility of utilizing peer-to-peer for the last mile.
The recommended peer-to-peer solution enables customers, who are already traveling the distance to an IKEA store to pick up their Click & Collect order, to also collect and deliver another customer’s home delivery order to someone living in their nearby neighborhood. The solution connects people in need of home delivery with people heading in the same direction that have the extra capacity for the goods needed to be sent. This reduces the need for separate freight deliveries, resulting in decreased environmental impact while also lowering last-mile delivery costs. It is important to note that it is a complex task to develop a last-mile delivery offering that maximizes and meets all requirements, both coming internally and externally. Therefore, IKEA like other omni-channel retailers, must provide customers with a variety of last-mile delivery options from which to select the option that best meets their preferences and requirements in order to balance economic and environmental requirements as well as customer expectations. Finally, by implementing the recommended peer-to-peer last-mile delivery solution, IKEA can offer their customers a low-cost and environmentally friendly option for home delivery while also reaching a wider market in a cost-effective manner. As a result, peer-to-peer last-mile delivery represents a promising alignment with IKEA’s long term strategy of becoming more accessible, affordable and sustainable.
This popular scientific article is derived from the master thesis “Exploring peer-to-peer last-mile delivery: an IKEA case study” written by Alva Hallberg and Filippa Rundqvist (2022). (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9089586
- author
- Hallberg, Alva LU and Rundqvist, Filippa LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- MTTM05 20221
- year
- 2022
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- Omni-channel retailing, Last-mile delivery, Crowdsourcing, Peer-to-peer last-mile delivery, Urban logistical challenges
- report number
- 5968
- language
- English
- id
- 9089586
- date added to LUP
- 2022-06-16 13:25:41
- date last changed
- 2022-07-05 18:15:17
@misc{9089586,
abstract = {{The retail landscape has endured significant changes as a result of the e-commerce industry’s rapid growth over the last decade. As new channels are being added, traditional brick-andmortar retailers have transformed into multi- and omni-channel retailers in order to seize this growth opportunity. Last-mile delivery is stated to be one of the logistical processes mostly affected by the shift to omni-channel retailing. Changing shopping behaviors and rising customer expectations are putting higher pressure on e-retailers to reposition their delivery service offerings in order to provide a compelling value proposition. At the same time, last-mile delivery is frequently regarded as the most inefficient and expensive aspect of the supply chain, as well as the one with the most critical environmental concerns. Accordingly, there is an identified need to explore how omni-channel retailers can develop a last-mile delivery offer that is both appealing to customers and economically as well as environmentally sustainable.
To respond to urban logistical challenges in last-mile delivery, IKEA has identified the possibility of utilizing peer-to-peer delivery, as a subset of crowdsourcing, for the last mile. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to explore and recommend a peer-to-peer last-mile delivery solution for IKEA to test that takes into account customer expectations along with economical and environmental requirements. The purpose is addressed through an exploratory study with a design science research approach, involving a multiple case study for data collection. The analysis covers the mapping of the current last-mile delivery set-up for each case as well as identifying requirements of last-mile delivery, including external customer expectations along with internal economic and environmental requirements. Given the unexplored nature of peer-to-peer delivery in research and the scarcity of practical examples, the main theoretical contribution of this thesis is the exploration of how peer-to-peer delivery relates to identified requirements of last-mile delivery. Beyond the theoretical contribution, this thesis provides a real-world example of a peer-to-peer last-mile delivery solution developed for IKEA to test in an urban, omni-channel environment. The results of this thesis expects to inspire researchers and practitioners on how to develop and test a peer-to-peer last-mile delivery solution while also contributing to the generation of new knowledge and theoretical insights into the subject. However, this thesis calls for further research evaluating the performance of peer-to-peer last-mile delivery in comparison to other last-mile delivery alternatives as well as its relation to the most critical logistical challenges of last-mile delivery.}},
author = {{Hallberg, Alva and Rundqvist, Filippa}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Exploring peer-to-peer last-mile delivery: an IKEA case study}},
year = {{2022}},
}