[dsr_]

Because FedEx knows that Amazon is planning on being a competitor to them.

Amazon Delivery (or some name similar to that) will eventually handle warehousing, fulfillment, transshipment, drop shipping, and last-mile delivery. Delivery is such a large expense to Amazon, it only stands to reason.

UPS presumably believes that they can compete with that. Maybe they can. Or, possibly, they believe that they will be purchased by Amazon in the future.

[pardavis]

Yes, it is coming (google Ship with Amazon) but UPS will be fine.

In much the same way Amazon has a head start on other e-commerce firms, UPS has on Amazon. They have been customer-obsessed in one of the hardest spaces (Meatspace logistics) for literally 111 years. This kind of thing is extremely difficult to get right, and Amazon has a long, long way to go before they can compete with UPS.

[penagwin]

Coming? Nearly all packages in my area (Grand Rapids, MI) are now delivered by Amazon.

Which is super annoying for me, I live in an apartment complex, they used to almost exclusively use USPS where I live, and they have a system where they put a key in your mailbox, etc.

Amazon's deliverers are literally random people - after talking to one myself it became apparent that they barely even require much English (I'm only complaining because that makes it harder to communicate - I don't care if they speak english or not but if it's impeding their one job - delivering a package, then I'm kinda erked)

Since it's never the same person, the standards are wild. Sometimes the package is left in my garage, sometimes by the front apartment door (you have to be buzzed in)[0], sometimes they're by my specific apartment's door [1]. Other times they take it to the rental office.

Amazon really needs to figure this out, this isn't the only apartment complex in the city.

[0] https://i.imgur.com/6GcPI7N.png [1] https://i.imgur.com/9RuceQj.png

EDIT: Also sometimes they call when they can't get inside, sometimes they just leave it outside, sometimes they don't call or ring the buzzer and just say "Couldn't deliver". It's wildly inconsistent.

[chaoticmass]

I was picking up my mail at my apartment complex when an Amazon delivery dude asked if I would let him in (the apartment requires a key fob to open doors to get access to the building). I told him he can just leave his packages at the leasing office like the other carriers do. He said his instructions say to leave the packages at the apartment door, so I told him maybe the people at the leasing office could help him out.

Back at my apartment, as I'm about to be at my door, I see the guy again, he's hitched a ride up the elevator as someone else let him on, and he's asking me where apartment #### is, I pointed to the sign by the stairwell with a map of the building.

The dude didn't seem very good at his job, and the fact that Amazon is instructing their delivery people to circumvent building security to leave packages at people's door is concerning.

[Majromax]

> the fact that Amazon is instructing their delivery people to circumvent building security to leave packages at people's door is concerning.

Oh, I'm sure that Amazon never instructed delivery agents to ignore building security. Instead, I expect they just passively incentivize it.

For example, the delivery agent might have been able to mark the package as undeliverable, but in turn they may have had to pay a penalty if more than a threshold of deliveries could not be completed as directed. It's not an instruction to trespass to deliver, just ignorance of what it takes.

In a functional delivery system, there'd be a way for knowledge like this to percolate back up -- the delivery agent would mark the package as undeliverable, and then the courier company would investigate the situation and ultimately refuse to accept deliveries for door-delivery in that building.

However, Amazon's current structure makes this functionally impossible, and a rotating cast of contractors makes even the knowledge-acquisition step impractical.

[chaoticmass]

After selling on Amazon for a few years, I can say this sounds exactly like something they're probably doing.

[aeternus]

Amazon's delivery drivers are more similar to Uber/Lyft drivers. They get minimal to no training and simply follow instructions via the app. Some of them have documented the experience on youtube and it's worth a watch. They often have to accept the route with minimal information.

[pardavis]

You’re talking about amazon packages. I’m talking about all packages in the entire world.

[debatem1]

Not disagreeing that they has a long way to go here, but Amazon beats 100-year-old companies on their core competencies all day, every day. I'm not sure the history will save UPS in the end.

[pardavis]

True. However, I feel that UPS has the customer obsession factor that other 100 year old companies don’t.

See, for instance, the parent headline. UPS is fanatical about delivering packages and is therefore willing to work with a doomsday competitor in huge volume. This in contrast to Fedex who will not.

[inferiorhuman]

True. However, I feel that UPS has the customer obsession factor that other 100 year old companies don’t.

Sadly UPS customers aren't the people receiving the packages. I've never dealt with a company that makes it as hard to interact with a real human being as UPS. Not even banks, government agencies, etc. come close. This wouldn't be a problem, but every time UPS screws up it's a colossal effort to get UPS to correct their mistakes.

UPS routes my package from the regional distribution center in the Bay Area to Massachusetts on a same day flight? Great, it's going to take ANOTHER WEEK to get my package because UPS doesn't guarantee delivery time on ground shipments even when UPS is 100% at fault.

UPS delivers my package to the wrong address (different than above, different hub)? Yeah that only took like 2-3 hours of wading through overseas call centers where they kept claiming the package was left on at my front door before they realized they sent out a rookie driver who couldn't read house numbers. Unfortunately once you wade through the IVR you're routed to customer service people who are programmed to tell you whatever they can to get you off the phone.

UPS has a "signature required" package that I've been waiting all day for (they keep sending invalid "My Choice" verification information so I have no idea when I'll be blessed with a delivery)? Driver just lobs it at the door without even bothering to ring the doorbell.

I have one address that I receive packages at sometimes, it's about a 15 minute drive from a distribution center but for reasons unknown they route packages from the distribution center in a different county about an hour away. This means packages arrive at unpredictable times and if I miss a delivery or they screw it up, I've got to go well out of my way to sort it out.

UPS may be obsessive about something, but from my POV it's not delivering packages. More likely cost reduction is their main concern.

[axaxs]

That's actually an interesting take. Before Amazon became huge, UPS already started having regional warehouses that stored tons of reseller items for fast delivery. Seems Amazon has wasted a lot of money if the end result was trying to buy out UPS.

[esmy]

Amazon logistics is very much a thing in Europe, the UK at least. I would say about 2/3rds of my parcels in London are handled by actual Amazon contractors rather than the other options, such as Royal Mail which would be the closest USPS equivalent.

[StreamBright]

To be fair, they innovated a tonn in the space so they can beat FedEx with their insane efficiency.