Logistics

Seattle – Amazon.com is reportedly piloting an in-house delivery service that would use trucks driven by Amazon-hired contractors to deliver packages from area distribution centers to customer homes. According to the Wall Street Journal, Amazon.com is testing the service in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York.

The service could potentially reduce shipping times and costs and also enable same-day shipping. It is also seen as a direct competitive move against UPS, as well as Wal-Mart, EBay and Google.

Sunbury, Pa. – Weis Markets plans to invest $101 million in its growth program in 2014. That figure encompasses spending on 16 projects during 2014, including expansion of Weis’ 1.1-million-sq.-ft. distribution center in Milton, Pennsylvania.

Miami Gardens, Fla. — Demolition has begun at Palmetto Gardens Plaza, a 7.1-acre shopping center site in Miami Gardens, Fla. The site is being prepared for the development of a 63,000-sq.-ft. shopping center that will include a 41,000-sq.-ft. Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market and an additional inline and outparcel space of 20,000 sq. ft. — now available for lease.

King of Prussia, Pa. - eBay Enterprise is releasing a new offering for clients using its Ship-From-Store solution. The new solution leverages EBay Enterprise’s solutions with freight companies to provide its Ship-From-Store clients with discounted shipping rates, free or discounted branded packing supplies and rebates for high-volume orders that they would not be able to obtain on their own.

Phoenix -- Leslie's Poolmart, Inc. said it will grand-open 20 retail locations throughout the U.S. on April 25; stores will open in Alabama, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.

In total, Leslie's plans to open 45 new stores this year, between April and May of 2014.

Mississauga, Canada - Federal Express Canada Ltd. has reached an agreement with Home Hardware Stores Ltd. that allows individual dealer-owners the ability to house full-service FedEx Authorized ShipCenters within their stores. The FedEx Authorized ShipCenters will be rolled out across Canada in a series of implementation waves throughout the year.

Washington, D.C. - The National Retail Federation (NRF) was recognized on Earth Day, April 22, by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with its 2014 SmartWay Affiliate Challenge award. The EPA recognized NRF for supporting policies and practices that reduce truck emissions and enhance freight efficiency.

The SmartWay Affiliate Challenge is a national challenge developed by the EPA to acknowledge organizations that do an exceptional job supporting the partnership’s freight sustainability goals.

New York -- E-commerce company Birchbox, which provides subscribers with monthly boxes of personalized beauty products for a monthly fee, has launched managed fulfillment operations and small parcel management with third party logistics provider OHL. The new fulfillment center is located in Mount Juliet, Tenn., providing a more centralized location and faster transit times for Birchbox customers across the U.S.