The Great Acceleration of eCommerce brought on by the pandemic has resulted in an unprecedented influx in deliveries. For Canada Post, every day of the last eighteen months has felt like Christmas. In this episode of The Voice of Retail, I am thrilled to chat with Canada Post’s Director of eCommerce, Steve Eggers. After debriefing on how the pandemic has brought on challenges and opportunities for the Crown Corporation, we discuss consumer behaviour, the scope of the company, building the capacity to handle the growth in parcels, and the upcoming holiday season.
Welcome to the The Voice of Retail , I’m your host Michael LeBlanc, and this podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada.
The Great Acceleration of eCommerce brought on by the pandemic has resulted in an unprecedented influx in deliveries. For Canada Post, every day of the last eighteen months has felt like Christmas.
In this episode of The Voice of Retail, I am thrilled to chat with Canada Post’s Director of eCommerce, Steve Eggers. After debriefing on how the pandemic has brought on challenges and opportunities for the Crown Corporation, we discuss consumer behaviour, the scope of the company, building the capacity to handle the growth in parcels, and the upcoming holiday season.
Tune in to our interview and don’t miss Steve’s key pointers for small and mid-sized retailers who will be relying on a smooth delivery to the doorstep this holiday season.
For more research and resources for retailers on eCommerce:
https://www.canadapost-postescanada.ca/cpc/en/business/marketing/campaign/ecommerce-hub.page?ecid=murl_lg_11176
Thanks for tuning into today’s episode of The Voice of Retail. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss out on the latest episodes, industry news, and insights. If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a rating and review, as it really helps us grow so that we can continue getting amazing guests on the show.
I’m your host Michael LeBlanc, President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company, and if you’re looking for more content, or want to chat follow me on LinkedIn, or visit my website meleblanc.co!
Until next time, stay safe and have a great week!
Michael LeBlanc is the Founder & President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc and a Senior Advisor to Retail Council of Canada as part of his advisory and consulting practice. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience, and has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. Michael is the producer and host of a network of leading podcasts including Canada’s top retail industry podcast, The Voice of Retail, plus Global E-Commerce Tech Talks and The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois and the all new Conversations with CommerceNext podcast. You can learn more about Michael here or on LinkedIn.
Michael LeBlanc 00:04
Welcome to The Voice of Retail, I'm your host Michael Leblanc and this podcast is brought to you in conjunction with Retail Council of Canada.
Michael LeBlanc 00:10
The Great Acceleration of eCommerce brought on by the pandemic has resulted in an unprecedented influx in deliveries. For Canada Post, every day of the last eighteen months has felt like Christmas.
Michael LeBlanc 00:20
In this episode of The Voice of Retail, I am thrilled to chat with Canada Post’s Director of eCommerce, Steve Eggers. After debriefing on how the pandemic has brought on challenges and opportunities for the Crown Corporation, we discuss consumer behaviour, the scope of the company, building the capacity to handle the growth in parcels, and the upcoming holiday season.
Michael LeBlanc 00:37
Tune in to our interview and don’t miss Steve’s key pointers for small and mid-sized retailers who will be relying on a smooth delivery to the doorstep this holiday season.
Steve Eggers 00:46
You know, we all talk about omni channel, but I think it was a true test over COVID and it'll be, I think, a test this year and moving forward, you know, ensuring that, that customer experience that you have in one channel is emulated or, you know, there's that, that, kind of, clear.
Michael LeBlanc 01:02
Connected, yeah, yeah.
Steve Eggers 01:03
Connected, yeah, exactly. That, that clear connect between the various channels, and it's, and a customer's experience of your brand is, is really tested.
Michael LeBlanc 01:13
Let's listen in now. Steve, welcome to The Voice of Retail podcast. How are you doing this afternoon?
Steve Eggers 01:18
Doing great, Michael.
Michael LeBlanc 01:19
Well, it's great to have you on the podcast, I been working with, talking with Canada Post for most of my career in one way, shape or another. So, it's great to have you on, it's certainly interesting times for all of us and so thank you for making time and what I'm sure is a busy time for you and the team. So, why don't we jump right in first, tell us about yourself, who you are your background and your role at Canada Post?
Steve Eggers 01:43
Yeah, I'm Director of Sales for Canada Post and major accounts and eCommerce. So really what, what my team manages is the relationship with, with some of our largest retailers in Canada. I've been, I'm, kind of, in a unique position nowadays that I've been with this company for 25 plus years.
Michael LeBlanc 02:04
Wow. 25 years. That's impressive. Congratulations.
Steve Eggers 02:07
Well, thank you, thank you. Yeah, I mean, it's, it's been a, it's been a fun journey and that I think, you know, because of the scope of the company, there's a lot of different careers you can have with it, but I've been predominantly supporting the, the larger ecommerce retailers through that time. So, you can imagine there's been a lot of changes over those years.
Michael LeBlanc 02:25
Mm hmm and where abouts are you based, are you Toronto or you Ottawa based?
Steve Eggers 02:29
Toronto.
Michael LeBlanc 02:30
There's no one who's listening to this podcast anywhere on this, kind of, continent anyway, that wouldn't know the name Canada Post, but like many things, you know, we may not understand the full scope and scale and, you know, facilities and the number of packages, since we're talking about packages, but that you deliver, that, you know, it's some big, big numbers, but I think we lose track of it. So, give just, give us a 411, a refresher on the scope and scale of Canada Post.
Steve Eggers 02:54
Sure, it's funny, because this is kind of the cocktail party questions and as I get asked, and it's fun because I think most people just are, they connect Canada Post, generally with their letter carrier, that's, that's their first kind of connection. So yeah, we're a big company. We, we're one of the biggest employers in Canada. So, we have over 70,000. emp-, you know, full time and part time employees, give you a feel for, you know, the amount of parcels we're delivering, you know, we're probably delivering within every year over 6 billion pieces of mail parcels and messages.
Michael LeBlanc 03:36
Billion, it's billion with a ‘B’, billion, wow.
Steve Eggers 03:39
Billion. So, it's a big number and what's kind of interesting, too, I think, you know, you're, we're talking with retailers and about retailers as Canada Post also is a, has a, has a fairly extensive retail network on their own as well or through partnerships. So, we've got about 6000 retail post offices across the country. So, it's a, it's a big, it's a, it's a big network and you know, one thing I would probably add as well, just to give you a sense, I believe we are the biggest fleet in the country. So, we have just over 13,000 Canada Post vehicles on the street. So, it's a big number. It's a big company, and a big employer.
Michael LeBlanc 04:19
Yeah, everything about Canada Post is, is, is big. Now, when we think about eCommerce, it used to be the case and it still may be the case that you accounted for something like two thirds of all e-commerce package deliveries. Is that still the case, do I have that right?
Steve Eggers 04:35
Yeah, I'd say we were about I'd say around 60%. That's probably closer number 60% of the market, market share of eComm.
Michael LeBlanc 04:48
Right, right and, and for those who, again, may not know Canada Post is an arm's length Crown Corporation, but you're in, your mandate is to be more than self-funding really, right. You're, you're there to, in your various ways, generate revenue that, that helps get you closer to, to net zero with all the various puts and takes, right.
Steve Eggers 05:12
Yeah, you're right on. I mean, we, we obviously letter mail and parcel are the letters that you get bills, invoices, things like that those are, those do not, we do not do cross subsidizing. So, we don't cross subsidize the letter mail with the parcels we do have to be competitive within that e-commerce parcel space on our own. So, yeah.
Michael LeBlanc 05:31
All right, well, let's go through a short history of time, so to speak. So,
Steve Eggers 05:34
Sure.
Michael LeBlanc 05:35
You know, 18 months ago, there this thing popped up and oh, my goodness, you know, and your world must have changed dramatically. You know, let's, let's talk about it. Let's, let's talk about what happened over the past 18 months and let's talk about how you flexed and were able to keep up, I don't think anybody is able to keep up. So, it's, kind of, a, it's not exactly a fair question when you have a 70% overnight increase in, in volume, but take, take me through what happened over the past 18 months?
Steve Eggers 06:06
Sure, sure and I think like a lot of people, I mean, that those 18 months seem to have just flown by, I think with just the fact that it is, you know, anytime you have an enormous change, it tends to make time just, just fly, but we saw, obviously, like a lot of retailers, we're not unique in this, I think anyone who has any type of supply chain, when COVID hit, it was a dramatic change to, to the market, not just in Canada, but obviously globally, too. So, I think the big, the big shift is we saw online, shopping accelerates at such a quick pace, you know, we were essentially delivering what would be Christmas or holiday peak season in March of 2020.
Michael LeBlanc 06:50
It was Christmas every day for you guys, right?
Steve Eggers 06:52
It was Christmas every day, and which, you know, it sounds like a dream if you're, you're looking to get into business and e-commerce, but it's almost too much of a dream. We saw, you know, when you look at May through to September 2020. We saw 36% growth year over year monthly. So, it just continued to grow and grow and what's kind of interesting, too, is I think a lot of people when they associate e-commerce are thinking, okay, the major retail players, but, you know, smaller businesses, we saw 50% growth with them. So, it's, it's coming from all, all sides, so.
Michael LeBlanc 07:28
It was that dynamic where in many provinces, they were closed, they had no option, right, they even if you were, so to speak, an unwilling e-commerce operator, some small businesses are because they've, kind of, I think they feel it loses their, what makes them special, you know, yeah, you, you needed suddenly, whether you wanted to or not, your, your, you needed to become an ecommerce retailer as a small business, right.
Steve Eggers 07:51
You did, you did, which is, which is, I think, you know, we were talking earlier about innovation. I think for small businesses, you're seeing a lot of great innovation, there's great opportunities with, with them being, kind of, nimble to, to, kind of, adapt, but it definitely was trial by fire and we're seeing 2021 in a similar view that it's certainly not going away. It's, that growths continuing.
Michael LeBlanc 08:16
Well, that's a good segue. Let's talk about holiday 2021, you know, in the before time, you and I would have been talking about PEAK, I think last year was called super PEAK, I've run out of adjectives. Maybe you guys have created some in the marketing team, your marketing folks super-duper PEAK or something, but, you know, as we saw e-commerce numbers and talking to retailers over the summer, the numbers ebbed off. Just because, you know, as stores open, eCommerce sales ebbed off, but what I most commonly heard was that the waterline went up significantly. It didn't recede, but the pace kind of decent, you know, became a little more normalized, like eCommerce is always growing, you know, in the before time, like, what, 2019 grew like 16%. What have you been experiencing, did you experience a bit of a lull, and then are you are you expecting it, a fast hockey stick or what are you anticipating and what are you hearing from your retail partners?
Steve Eggers 09:08
Well, I think you're right, you're right, in that there were some puts and takes, right. So, you did see, when stores opened again, there was a little bit of a containment of all the e-commerce volumes we saw, we saw a little bit of, of relaxation, but the flip side to this is, you know, you also take a look at, at consumers that may be historically and it's hard to believe, you know, weren't doing a lot of online purchases. We saw those folks being forced to adopt e-commerce and I think what you, what happens when you, when you get that is people get used to a certain experience and they see some benefits in doing it. It's really, the secret sauce is, so, you have stores opening, so I do think there'll be some, obviously, consumers that are looking to, to, kind of, get out there and go through those channels, but at the same token you're also going to have a brand-new group of consumers that have become a lot more comfortable buying online because of the pandemic. So, we're anticipating, at least from our perspective, a similar growth that we saw last year. So, just with the ebb and flow of those two factors.
Michael LeBlanc 10:19
Wait a minute, similar growth in 2021 as 2020. So, 2020, I think Stats Can would tell us like 70% growth, but we're not going to see 70% year over year from 2020, 2020 and 2021, or you think there's going to be that kind of growth, even in this peak?
Steve Eggers 10:38
We will, we will see less than last year, you're fair in saying that I think what, what we're looking at it is more from a year, you know, a full year perspective, because the first three months would have been would have been, kind of, pre-pandemic. So, there is some stabilization, but certainly what we're not going to see is that kind of, reverse trend back to just 19%, etc., so.
Michael LeBlanc 11:01
Well, you know, and it's an interesting because I think your comment about more Canadians shopping online to me, and I wonder if you think the same, the more Canadians shopping online for groceries, is the flywheel of e-commerce. You guys aren't in the grocery delivery business, but it gets people, you know, once you're buying your food online, it does. It feels like it opens up just e-commerce in general, from a behavioral perspective, both from and we're gonna get to this a little later, both from a trial and then just from a frequency, right, would you agree, do you think that connects?
Steve Eggers 11:32
Absolutely, absolutely. You take a look at some of the big players out there that have gotten into groceries and you know, at one point, you know, there's, there's, a there, you know, there, there was that use of two separate channels, you're gonna buy your groceries here, and then you'll buy your, your dry goods or, you know, non-grocery goods through a separate channel. A lot of the times what we're seeing now is you're right, a consolidation, if you're going to buy your groceries, you may want to buy some accessories with that as well. So.
Michael LeBlanc 11:59
Yeah.
Steve Eggers 11:59
That is, that is what's happening in the market for sure.
Michael LeBlanc 12:02
So, we're talking close to, you know, we're talking here in October, and I guess, I, you know, my next line of question is his advice to retailers as they head into peak, I guess the advice would be start back in May thinking about it.
Steve Eggers 12:14
Yeah.
Michael LeBlanc 12:15
Given, you know, given where we are today, and given our conversation, is there anything that you can share with the listeners in terms of okay, it's October, it's November about it, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, in the big season? Any? You know, is there a checklist or quick tips, you say, listen, whatever you do, just make sure you're doing these, these three or four things and, you know, hopefully you're prepared, but if you're still thinking about it, or even if you're prepared, here's the things you want to make sure you get right for sure. What would those kinds of things be?
Steve Eggers 12:47
The lessons learned from, from this is, and we saw it a little bit last year. I mean, one of the things the themes that we saw that retailers are trying to control because, because on their side, they're also trying to control their own supply chain and there's been issues also with importation because remember, it's a global, global economy. So, where we may be out of the woods here, there are other locations that aren't. So,
Michael LeBlanc 13:12
If I took a shot of whiskey every time, I said the word or heard the word supply chain in the past month, I'd be on the floor most days, it's crazy.
Steve Eggers 13:19
Well, I mean, it's, it hits home personally, I mean, we just bought, we're doing a renovation, we just wanted to get, we're waiting for an oven to be delivered for December and, and that's going to now be pushed out three months later. So, we'll be having spaghetti for Christmas dinner.
Michael LeBlanc 13:35
Fire up the microwave or the hibachi because, yeah, maybe a bit late, right, right on.
Steve Eggers 13:39
But, yeah, exactly. Exactly. So, so yeah, I mean, I would probably say that, you know, one of the best practices is definitely trying to spread out your promotions a little bit more, so that you can, kind of, control the curve in terms of orders, right, you want to, obviously, the earlier you can get orders in the more opportunity you have to fulfill them. I would say that there's a few things, you know, specifically I mean, I'm, if I was looking at maybe a mid-market or smaller retailer, I would suggest that, you know, one of the things that you have to be very cognizant of his things that maybe not as, as, as, you know, sexy, but returns, for example, returns is something that most consumers are looking for right now.
Steve Eggers 14:25
In fact, you know, we did research recently that said that 61% of consumers are selecting a retailer because they offer free returns, or they would move to another option if you didn't offer a very simple return process. These are things that, that, you know, historically were seen as, kind of, cost drivers, but what they become is more, if you don't offer it they become a lost sale, right and that's sometimes what you miss. So, those are a couple.
Steve Eggers 14:56
I think, I think what you're seeing in the market now with the larger marketplace, retailers that are involved in marketplace, etc., is flexibility, not just around the type of delivery options, but also how you receive your product and if anything, I think omni channel is probably gone through a faster evolution through this, this, this whole COVID experience. So, now consumers are saying, okay, we want to be able to either pick it up, you know, at my house, so I want to get it, click and collect, I want to have options to maybe receive it near my cottage if I want to order a product. So, that type of flexibility and ease of use is going to be more and more important this year and going on to next year.
Michael LeBlanc 15:40
All right, so, so, as always, as a retailer, think about that, that fine line between encouraging returns to make sure you don't lose the sale and encouraging too many returns. So, that, that kind of jumps out. I like your point about spreading out the volumes to the degree you can. Let's talk about that for a bit. So.
Steve Eggers 15:58
Sure.
Michael LeBlanc 15:58
I was listening to a panel on the David Sobeys school and your, your boss was there talking about well, you know, it is the case that the volumes outstripped our capability to ingest as we would say, or take in packages and.
Steve Eggers 16:14
We call it induct
Michael LeBlanc 16:15
Induct, induct. See, I run The Food Professor podcast, so I'm just think of ingesting all the time.
Steve Eggers 16:21
I like that too, it's right around lunchtime, it's feeling good.
Michael LeBlanc 16:25
But listen, you know, like, where are you guys today, I mean, I do hear from retailers that, that there are limits put on packages that you can, that they can send you, that you can take in, let's talk about that for a bit, where are you this season?
Steve Eggers 16:38
You know, much like many of the folks in supply chain within retail and outside of retail and include-, and also the major carriers out there. Last year was a little bit of a different animal in that you're, you know, you don't have a history to, kind of, build a strategy around, you may, you may have a strategy, but it's not geared around ingestion, I'll use your word of, you know, 15% to 100%, more volume immediately with no planning. So, I think this year, we've learned a lot from the events that happened last year. I also think that we're very close to our retail partners.
Steve Eggers 17:16
So in terms of understanding kind of what their plans are and their forecasting, we're very, very tight on that front, but I also think one of the things that we've been able to do over the last year is there was a lot of investment around automation that came into fruition in the beginning of 2021, which will, will set us up nicely, I think in 20-, at the end of this year, in terms of automation, because I think you were referring to the bottleneck that's, that's the big issue is that, you know, you have one plant that you're trying to also be very cognizant of safe-, the safety of your own employees, right. So, and none of these plants were really designed to have six feet, people six feet away, etc.
Michael LeBlanc 17:59
Non-overlapping shifts and the
Steve Eggers 18:01
Non overlapping shifts, you got it.
Michael LeBlanc 18:03
All those things, right, yeah, for sure.
Steve Eggers 18:04
All those all those things. Whereas what a few things that we're doing just a couple of, of kind of notes. One is that, you know, we've, we've put in a lot more automation in, in our major plants, particularly in Montreal, which is a big hub for us, where now we have an automated sorter that's able to process parcels almost at 50% more, so, so we have some of that and also, at the end of, you know, where we're going, there's more future state, but at the end of 2022, in the last quarter, we're opening up a big processing plant in Scarborough, which we will it'll double our capacity in the GTA, which is, which is a big, big relief, because most of the parcels that come in from retailers today are going through our gateway facility, which is an older plant. So, so, that'll help and we're confident that, that's going to give us a bunch of new capacity and I think the, the spin off on this thing, which is, is, kind of, key to our company is also it'll be a net zero carbon designed plant, so there's, there's some benefit there too, so.
Michael LeBlanc 19:12
Yeah, for sure. So well, let's, let's stay on that, I was gonna talk about that towards the end of the podcast, but since we're talking about it now. How, you know, the fact that e-commerce is growing was not new pre COVID, right, it was already growing. It probably was already outpacing the capacity of many supply chains, including yours to handle the volume even at 17% growth. So, what plans are in place beyond Scarborough because we know this isn't stopping. We know e-commerce is growing it, you know, pick a number, but it's not going to go backwards and it's going to continue to increase. So beyond Scarborough, which is great news, you know, is there a long term investment plan that was already in place in the before time these things don't happen overnight, you know, can you, can you give us some level of confidence that, you know, three to five years from today, you'll be, like, yeah, can you send us more we can handle it, more than you can send us, please send it along, and we'll take care of it. So, how are you guys thinking about from that, from a big, big picture perspective?
Steve Eggers 20:10
There's a whole slew of different things that I think you're absolutely right. I mean, this, this long-term planning around, for the company has, it didn't arrive with COVID. It's just some of the realities, kind of, hit faster, but I think the key for us is, number one is that the plant in GTA is important in that, you know, right now, about 60% of the volumes that we get to go across the country come into the GTA, so it's a big chunk of, of business, but outside of that.
Steve Eggers 20:39
I think the real focus for our company is also on automation, trying to ensure that we are, you know, the area of the business that I think we're probably the most effective at delivering is smaller parcels and so we've invested in a number of packets, sorters, which is, packets being, kind of, smaller parcels, which will able to, kind of, speed up the process by 50% have signed in those plants, because most of the bottleneck that we experience, Michael is, is within the plants themselves. So, if we can get the, you know, with this kind of investment, and we have a little bit less of, kind of, hands on the product and more machines pushing the products through, we'll have a better delivery experience for sure. That's, that's the focus. Outside of that, you know, I think it's, it's also focused on how can we be more effective delivery within major urban centers because that's where most of the, the, the folks are buying, suburban and urban and so we're.
Michael LeBlanc 21:46
Most of it deliveries, right? I mean, just by percentage of population, right.
Steve Eggers 21:49
You got it and I think part of it for us is also trying to leverage the economy’s, the scale that we have, because I think I think, you know, our biggest asset is that we still are delivering not just parcels, but we're delivering direct mail, etc. So, there's some advantages if we can consolidate that volume.
Michael LeBlanc 22:07
Right on.
Steve Eggers 22:07
So, there's lots of work being done on that as well, to ensure that we have adequate capacity.
Michael LeBlanc 22:13
Well, and I imagine posts and delivery services around the world are having the same discussions, right. So, it's, I'm sure it's an interesting time for your purchasing people as well, like, we need an automated machine, yeah, you and everybody else,
Steve Eggers 22:24
Right.
Michael LeBlanc 22:24
Around the world. So, I continue to, you know, when I speak to the media, I continue to remind them, this is a global phenomenon. It's not just happening in Canada or North America and, you know, that many of these things and this is what's causing, I think a bit of the bit of the changes. Well, let's, let's transition a little bit over to consumers, you guys have always done fantastic research, helping retailers understand consumer behaviors, and what they're thinking, and what they're doing, and profiling, and segmentation, and all that stuff around e-commerce and direct-to-consumer. I wanted to frame it in, kind of, trying to figure out what you see in the data that is not just a temporary adjustment to unusual circumstances, but a permanent structural, so to speak, changing consumer behavior. Can you, can you shed some light on that, from any research you might have handy?
Steve Eggers 23:12
I think the biggest one is the, the adoption rate, that I'll, kind of, preface it this way. With COVID you have, you know, we had about 80, 85% of the of the country that were shopping online, but there was a fraction of the country, it's hard to believe, but there's a group that, that weren't buying as much online. What COVID has done, as I mentioned before, is, kind of, forced people to, to at least get used to that experience and one of the things that we've seen is, we call them in the research, we call shoppers that, that make over 25 plus purchases online a year hyper shoppers, and you know, that's probably a lot of people.
Michael LeBlanc 23:59
I think I made 25 purchases last month, alone.
Steve Eggers 24:01
Right, yeah, I think you'd be, I think, I think we have a new, a new category, actually and I'm not being facetious, but I think it's, I can't remember the name of it, but it's ultra-hyper shopper, which would be beyond that, but bottom line is
Michael LeBlanc 24:14
Podcast host, perhaps, maybe.
Steve Eggers 24:16
Podcast host. Yeah, I think it's, I think your name is actually assigned to it. But, but yeah, so I think, I think what you're seeing is, is the, the, the movement from somebody who orders, maybe, one or two parcels online now and quickly, kind of, moves into that more hyper type of shopper that, that, that shift, and that transition is much faster. So, you're going to see more people that are more experienced in buying online and what that comes with is, is also a demand for certain types of attributes by the retailer, and also, also, you know, the potential to have more brand loyalty because these folks that, that do shop more online also if you do the right things will be loyal to you. So, that's, that's one thing that I think we'll just continue to increase.
Steve Eggers 25:02
I think one of the things that we're starting to see more of that'll become, I think, it'll evolve into, into a different type of platform, but things like, you know, shoppers listening to other shoppers, there's, there's a lot more of that, as you can imagine, either through social media, but also just directly online, I mean, we know that, you know, 41% of folks are getting their decision, or at least being influenced by, by these, kind of, online, online reviews to make their own decisions. So, you know, if you're, if you're not doing it, it's amazing, because there's a lot of still, you know, some big, even bigger retailers that aren't doing it. This is something that, that should be part of the strategy. You know, there's, there's themes that are happening more and more, you're seeing, you know, marketplaces expanding, there's going to be some winners and some losers, I think, in that too because everybody now is getting into the marketplace space. Which is like,
Michael LeBlanc 26:00
Marketplace is tricky, marketplace is tricky, right, because
Steve Eggers 26:02
It is.
Michael LeBlanc 26:03
It does put that customer experience once click, one big step away from you. It does, and I guess it actually puts more, you know, puts a lot of responsibility onto a lot of what are a lot of small, small, mid-sized companies, right, to ship direct to your customer. It's interesting, right as, as that component grows, I mean, it allows you to expand your assortment dramatically and your offerings, but you do have to be cautious around it, right?
Steve Eggers 26:28
You, you do, and I think that even how that channel evolves. I mean, you've seen, you've seen such a shift from, from folks getting into this, and some are successful, and some aren't and I think, you know, what, what will be interesting is, is to see where it nets out, but that's, that is, that's still going to be a big thing and I think what COVID, also, one other thing I would probably mentioned that COVID has brought out is that, you know, we all talk about omni channel, but I think it was a true test over COVID and it'll be, I think, a test this year and moving forward, ensuring that, that customer experience that you have in one channel is emulated or, you know, there's that, that, kind of, clear.
Michael LeBlanc 27:10
Connected, yeah.
Steve Eggers 27:11
Connected, yeah, exactly. That clear connect between the various channels, and it's, and a customer's experience of your brand is, is really tested by how well you're able to make that connection. So, that'll be big in the next few years to come.
Michael LeBlanc 27:29
Last, last question. Let's talk about what the research told us about shipping times and rate. So, you know, everybody, everybody loves free shipping. You know, there is no such thing from a retailer's perspective as free shipping. That's, that's an offer to consumers and, you know, speed is one of those things that has been bandied about, you know, that some retailers who offer same day, some will offer even quicker some we say it's, it's, you know, a few days is fine. What's your general sense about what consumers are realistically expect-, expecting in terms of shipping and in terms of speed of delivery from, from the retailer?
Steve Eggers 28:07
Really, it's, it's more around options, you know, versus having everything shipped, everything has to be shipped and it has to be same day, although I do think down the road, as, as supply chain works itself out. That expectation of same day shipping or next day moving to same day moving to within hours, that will happen, but I think right now where we are in the evolution is just being able to provide shipping options and flexible options, so the consumer doesn't have to be dictated on how and when they'll receive a product and I think that goes hand in hand with also giving the consumer options of where they want their product to be received, right.
Steve Eggers 28:52
So, it's what channel do they want it to be received that, you need to have, you need to give the consumer that choice because that's where, that's where things are moving. So, it's speed and it's also I think, options and transparency. So, so a consumer can see that usually, one thing I'd add is I think all of these options that we're talking about whether it's speed or flexible delivery, I think that the other thing I would mention to, you know, especially mid mark-, mid-, mid-market accounts or, or a retailer is also giving the customer a clear vision of what that looks like early in the buying stage, whether it's in browsing or, I mean, that's the best practice versus, kind of, surprising them with, with all of this stuff at the checkout.
Michael LeBlanc 29:42
Yeah, yeah and, and I guess that dovetails back into your and the supply chains capabilities to deliver on the promise, right and which is never an easy thing, but you know, that's the, that's the trick when it all comes, because we, you know, Black Friday, Cyber Monday these are very predictable days in terms of, well, yes and no, I mean, they're not predictable in terms of the numbers exactly, but the magnitude we know, we know they're going to be huge days, right. So, that's where it all starts to come together. And we start to manage customer expectations, as you said, so this is all very exciting. Can, is there a place where folks can go and learn more or maybe even see some of this research, is there resources for them that you can point us to?
Steve Eggers 30:25
Yeah, yeah, I actually think it's, this is a great site if you're interested in not just resources, but if you're there's they have webinars and blogs, and a whole slew of other industry information at I'll give you the URL. It's canadapost.ca/ecommercehub, one word, you can find a whole slew of information there.
Michael LeBlanc 30:49
E-commerce hub. All right, I'll put that link in the show notes. That's great. It's a great resource and no, you guys, you guys do some fantastic stuff. I mean, you're at, you're at a place in the market where you see a lot of things. Some sometimes you see no evil, say no evil, you too, but
Steve Eggers 31:05
Well, it's, it's, it's, I will say, I mean, over the 25 years, I've been at that company, one of the advantages I've had is, you know, you get that, kind of, visual on various businesses you get, it's like mini, you know, it's real education in what's happening in the retail market and, and like you said, the change is the one thing that's constant, so.
Michael LeBlanc 31:27
Well, you got you guys aren't pulling data from, from surveys of 1000 people, you're delivering a billion packages. So, I think you got a pretty good handle on what's happening. Yeah, well, listen, listen, Steve, it's been great having you on the podcast. Thanks for joining me and, and again, I'll put a link to that resource in the show notes and then I guess if anyone needs to reach out, you're on LinkedIn, that's probably a pretty good place to find you, is that the best place?
Steve Eggers 31:50
Yeah, absolutely. I would love to hear any questions; I'd be happy to answer any questions. So, thanks so much. Great opportunity to chat with you, Michael.
Michael LeBlanc 31:57
Thanks for tuning in to today's episode of The Voice of Retail. Be sure to follow the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you enjoy podcasts, so you don't miss out on the latest episodes, industry news, and insights. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a rating and review as it really helps us grow so that we continue to get amazing guests onto the show.
Michael LeBlanc 32:16
I'm your host Michael LeBlanc, President of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc. and if you're looking for more content or want to chat, follow me on LinkedIn or visit my website at meleblanc.co
Michael LeBlanc 32:25
Until next time, stay safe and have a great week!
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
retailers, big, consumers, Canada, commerce, delivering, delivery, retail, online, podcast, ecommerce, folks, supply chain, volume, people, pandemic, year, post, parcels, plants