When it came time for Best Home Furnishings to reevaluate their parcel carrier agreement, they looked for a company that could provide the data, expertise, and guidance they needed to help them optimize their parcel spend.
Although their employees had gained knowledge in dealing with carriers over the years, Best Home Furnishings was looking for a way to validate that they were spending efficiently. In looking at their invoices, ratings and discounts, they knew there were opportunities to minimize wasted dollars and optimize their rates; they just needed the data and insights to make it happen. That’s when they turned to Sifted.
Parcel Audit
Prior to working with Sifted, Best Home Furnishings had enough experience with carriers to know they were likely missing opportunities for refunds and discounts. With a simple setup process, Sifted’s Logistics Intelligence platform was able to quickly audit their invoices and request refunds.
With the data acquired during Sifted’s parcel audit process, several other opportunities were identified for savings.
Logistics Engineering
As Best Home Furnishings continued to see success with the parcel audit, they felt more comfortable taking on another project: a complete optimization of their carrier agreement. With guidance and direction from Sifted, they contacted carriers to begin the negotiation process.
“Since 2015, Sifted has been auditing our FedEx® shipments and finding savings for us. The success of the ongoing audit is what made us feel confident in having Sifted facilitate our logistics engineering project for us.”
-Steve Wahl, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer at Best Home Furnishings
First, Sifted analyzed Best Home Furnishings’ shipping profile, identifying three critical areas to address within their parcel carrier agreement for long-term savings.
The incumbent carrier, FedEx®, told Best Home Furnishings their current agreement was extremely competitive. But Sifted’s data said otherwise. Best Home Furnishings used Sifted’s information to guide their discussions with FedEx, which resulted in a minimally improved proposal. Next, Sifted and Best Home Furnishings agreed to reach out to UPS® for a quote that potentially could be used to ensure FedEx’s proposed terms and discounts were fully optimized.
Best Home Furnishings leveraged the significant discounts from UPS to improve their FedEx quote.
“Sifted’s comparative analysis of the two quotes was one of the most helpful things they did. We could have done it over time, but not as quickly. All we really had to do was sit through the carrier meetings – the amount of additional work on our end was minimal because Sifted was working behind the scenes to make it easier for us.”
-Steve Wahl, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer at Best Home Furnishings
Initially, Sifted identified a 10–12% savings opportunity through the carrier contract optimization engagement. But once completed, Sifted provided Best Home Furnishings an estimated savings of nearly $500,000 over a 36-month term—about 15% of their gross parcel spend!
Conclusion
Best Home Furnishings brought in Sifted to evaluate their overall shipping spend because they wanted to do things the right way. They knew that optimizing their carrier agreement was about having the right data, the right guidance, and the right support when negotiations stall—and Sifted provided all that and more.
With Sifted’s data and years of expertise, Best Home Furnishings was able to drive long-term savings the same way they prefer to do everything: the right way.
