More Options for Wine Shipping
Companies to launch new services to protect wine quality during transit
This week, Golden State Overnight (GSO), based in Alameda, Calif., debuted its overnight direct-to-trade (DtT) wine-shipping program, expanding on its existing overnight DtC program.
The last mile—the final link in the distribution chain after the shipment leaves a distribution hub via a delivery truck—is a great concern for shippers. The temperature-controlled environment ends there, with the shipment on the truck. This can become a real issue if an adult is not available to sign for delivery during cool morning hours.
Seasonal shipping solutions
According to the Wines & Vines/ShipCompliant Shipment Model, DtC wine shipments sharply decline during summer months, dipping to the lowest levels during July, August and September. Shipments begin to trend upward in October.
Jeff Carroll, vice president of compliance at ShipCompliant, Boulder, Colo., told Wines & Vines, “In the past, wineries would completely shut down shipping during the hot months of June, July, August and September. You’re starting now to see innovative approaches to applying temperature-control technologies and solutions to find windows of opportunities during those months.”
ShipCompliant offers a free tool on its website to analyze shipping files with ZIP code-level precision to determine if wine shipments will be safe within user-specified low and high temperature thresholds.
FedEx’s new overnight DtC option
“We’ve heard from several customers their interest and desire to get a summer solution,” said FedEx district sales manager Caroline Viger-Uu. “We’ve found that summer shipping volumes drop about 50% in the summer, so we thought it would be viable to come up with a solution to continue shipping all year long.”
To that end, FedEx will introduce an overnight, temperature- controlled wine shipping option for pick-up at wineries in the Napa/Sonoma areas. Pick-ups will feed five shipping hubs covering 70% of the country, with delivery by 10:30 the next morning.
Since FedEx has a division focused on the pharmaceutical industry, resources and equipment for temperature-controlled shipping are already in place. The new service launches a northern Napa/Sonoma-Chicago-Newark route in April and a southern Texas/Atlanta route in May.
Temperature-controlled trucks that maintain a steady 55°F will be used to ship to FedEx hubs. From the hubs, the wine will go out for delivery via regular trucks early the following morning.
Asked if wine shipments will be handled any differently once loaded onto a standard FedEx delivery truck, Carla Boyd, spokesperson for FedEx responded, “No. We will communicate internally to ensure couriers are aware of the service, and that deliveries are completed as quickly as possible.”
In the event an adult isn’t available to sign for wine shipment upon initial delivery, instead of being exiled to a potentially remote FedEx hub, shipments can be redirected to a customer’s nearest FedEx office location. There, the wine can be held as long as five business days in a temperature-controlled environment until an adult signs for it.
Pricing for the new service is still being finalized, but Saturday delivery will be available at no additional charge. FedEx’s temperature-controlled shipping service is slated to run April through September.
Currently, FedEx does not plan to offer temperature-controlled DtT wine-shipping options.
GSO’s overnight DtT service
As a regional alternative to national carriers, Golden State Overnight offers service within California, Nevada and Arizona. Shipments can be picked up from any winery within the state of California.
The impact of GSO’s overnight DtT launch is unclear within the context of the broader wine industry DtT picture. Mark Ruch, director of marketing at GSO, said, “It seems reasonable that the smaller wineries, at the very least, would opt for a simplified model for moving wine shipments to trade in the California, Nevada and Arizona regions. We’ve been in business since 1995; it is interesting that this demand is a relatively recent occurrence.”
At a potential cost savings for wineries, trade-enabled fulfillment houses and distributors, DtT overnight delivery service eliminates the need for warehousing and shipping routines, said Morley Chandler, CEO of GSO.
Vince Johnson, director of select wine service, said that GSO’s DtT overnight program, like its DtC wine shipping program, will run year-round, based on winery demand.
Another vendor, Wineshipping.com, has been shipping all packages temperature-controlled for three years. The shipments are sent by temperature-controlled trucks to four UPS hubs—in Texas, Illinois, Georgia and New York—then delivered the next day. The UPS trucks aren’t temperature controlled, but deliver in the morning. The company, which claims to be the country’s largest wine shipper, will use Fed-Ex or GSO if customers wish, according to Jennifer Goodrich, director, sales and customer service. She added that customers now save about 40% using the Wineshipping system compared to air.
