HA Logistics began working with a small specialty retailer in 1998 as the company was expanding its presence on a national level. The challenge, similar to that of many growing companies, was to develop a cost effective distribution network for goods to store locations with significant space and labor constraints. Key requirements of the program where:

• Early morning delivery, no later than 9:00 AM
  
• Variable pricing structure for storage and transportation
  
• Creation of a local buffer storage component for safety stock
  
• Management of Safety stock inventory
  
• Two-man, inside delivery and stocking
  
• Design of a pool delivery network
  
• Single source contact for all transportation and distribution information
  

With these requirements in mind, HA Logistics developed the network and infrastructure to manage this process for the customer. Through a process of discussions and site visits, HA developed an operating process that met the primary requirements and created a distribution network to support the customer’s expansion nationwide and into Canada. Our solution was centered around HA’s Customer Management Center, national carrier base, national pool-point network and a designated Logistics Coordinator. Today the company has over 165 stores nationwide and continues to expand over 20% annually.

Over the past three years, HA Logistics has constantly improved performance and reduced the costs for every aspect of the outbound supply chain:

• 98.9% on-time delivery
  
• 99.9% inventory accuracy
  
• 9.6% decrease in line-haul cost per pallet
  
• 8% decrease in local shipment costs from pool points