Special
Delivery
I n order to succeed, an e-commerce company must excel on two fronts: delivering quality products and providing superior customer service. That’s how it can differentiate itself from its
brick-and-mortar competitors.
Dollar Shave Club, a company specializing in
grooming and personal care products, was built
on this principle. Its founders saw a wide-open
market opportunity in giving consumers an alternative to buying high-priced shaving products
in stores. In 2011, it launched a direct-to-consumer subscription razor blades service, shipping
high-quality products at low prices—just a few
bucks a month—right to the customer’s door.
Subscribers receive monthly deliveries of shaving
supplies, including razors, creams, and lotions,
with the option of canceling at any time. In order
to retain these customers, the company must
deliver high-quality products on time and with
100-percent order accuracy.
Like many e-commerce startups, Venice, Calif.-based Dollar Shave Club initially contracted with
a third party to handle its order fulfillment. That
worked well enough for a time. But as business
took off, the company grew increasingly dissatisfied with the arrangement. Eventually, it became
clear that the retailer had outgrown its third-party
provider, says Lori Jackson, Dollar Shave’s direc-
In a reversal of the usual chain of events, e-tailer Dollar
Shave Club cut ties with its 3PL and built two automated
DCs so it could take charge of its own operations.
BY DAVID MALONEY
A razor-sharp strategy
for distribution
