White Glove Shipping 101: Set Your Delivery Experience Apart with White Glove Services
First, what is white glove delivery?
White glove shipping goes beyond curbside delivery to put customers at complete ease with valued-added services like in-room assembly, post-delivery clean up and even reverse logistics options (removal of an old refrigerator after a new one is delivered, for example).
Over the last two decades, e-commerce has boomed. In fact, worldwide e-commerce sales are projected to grow beyond $8 trillion by 2028.
Alongside the rapid rise of e-commerce, demand for full-service shipping options has increased as well—as a way for retailers to set themselves apart from competitors and also make an investment in the customer experience.
When delivering big, bulky goods like exercise equipment, furniture, large televisions and sporting goods for both B2C and B2B businesses, white glove services are an increasingly popular value-add.
U.S. e-commerce revenue for the furniture and home furnishings sector alone is projected to reach more than $115 billion by 2029, with the broader furniture market forecast to hit $430 billion overall.
Parcel carriers like FedEx, UPS and the U.S. Postal Service are not well-equipped to handle the growing trend of furniture and appliance e-commerce sales – especially “non-conveyable” (i.e., big and bulky) shipments that require manual handling.
That’s why, for many shippers, transportation logistics partners come into play.