FleetOptics already had big goals and high expectations heading into 2020. Having recently been named one of Canada’s Top Growing companies by The Globe & Mail FleetOptics was poised to expand and increase its national footprint. While the global pandemic has caused stress for many businesses, FleetOptics has flourished under a substantial increase in demand for its services.
FleetOptics origins began in Mississauga just five years ago and they have been at the forefront of innovating final mile delivery ever since. The ‘final mile’ is the last step before the package arrives at a customer’s door which is widely considered to be the most difficult step in the delivery supply chain.
With proprietary software systems, FleetOptics leverages technology and analytics to optimize delivery routes and ensure efficient package delivery. This sets them apart from legacy delivery companies in a regular year, and even more so in 2020.
Since the pandemic hit Canada in March, retail e-commerce sales have risen 99.3%, ballooning to record levels of $3.9 billion in May in Canada alone (IMI Research, Sept 2020). Many customers have had the experience of waiting weeks or months longer than expected for a package to be delivered. Leveraging their innovative technology, FleetOptics has maintained delivery times similar to pre- COVID levels, despite record demand.
“Delivery demand isn’t going to slow down for the remainder of 2020. We typically see delivery demand double in October as holiday shopping begins. This holiday season, we’re forecasting demand to triple compared to 2019” says John Mann, Managing Partner at FleetOptics. Not only has FleetOptics kept up with increased demand, they have also achieved their 2020 goal of expanding to new markets in Canada. They opened operations in Montreal in March and in Vancouver in July.
“We have a great group of clients. To better serve their customers, we realized we needed to expand beyond the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and provide a national footprint. We identified Vancouver and Montreal as the first two cities for us to expand to, based on our clients’ customer base” adds Mann.
An expanded footprint along with increased demand has required FleetOptics to rapidly grow its fleet of drivers. This Fall, they launched their first ever marketing campaign focused on attracting top quality drivers to join their team.
“The true heartbeat of our company is the fleet of drivers. We understand how important drivers are to our operation, which is why we provide them with all the resources they need to succeed, including training, equipment, and advanced technology.” says Vince Buckley, Managing Partner at FleetOptics. “another positive for us is we have the benefit of being located in Mississauga which gives us the ability to draw from a very dynamic labour force both in the City and across the GTA”, added Buckley.
A unique selling point to drivers? They can use their own cargo vehicles for deliveries, much like Uber drivers use their own vehicles for transport. In addition to using their own vehicles, drivers are equipped with technology from FleetOptics that optimizes their delivery routes and ultimately leads to efficient delivery routes. One of the many issues that plagues final mile delivery is an unsuccessful first delivery attempt to customers which results in a subsequent attempt the next day. With FleetOptics proprietary software, first attempt delivery success rate remains at a staggering 99.5% across all markets.
FleetOptics is continuing to evolve and find new technological solutions to improve the final mile delivery process. Providing the customer with a seamless delivery experience is crucial not only to FleetOptics, but also to their roster of clients.
John Mann is looking forward to the future, “We are proud to say we created our company in Mississauga and can vouch for the business climate in the community as we started to establish ourselves. This is now our second year on the Top Growing Companies in Canada List and we’re really excited to keep providing great delivery service across the GTA as well as Vancouver and Montreal.”
