An Orlando “last mile” delivery service firm that thrived during the pandemic continues to build momentum, even as the pandemic gets further in the rearview mirror.
OneRail on Wednesday announced a partnership with North Carolina-based Inmar Intelligence, which manages post-purchase customer relationships through its software.
The partnership means OneRail can integrate Inmar’s nationwide network of return-processing facilities to reduce transportation costs and handle customer returns more efficiently.
An unmatched driver network
OneRail has built a network of more than 12 million drivers, on various platforms, that deliver goods direct to consumers from a final transportation hub, a stage known as “last mile delivery.”
The fleet of 12 million drivers represents a jump from 7.5 million just two years ago.
“Retailers have spent the better part of 25 years intensely focused on offering a broad selection of products backed by convenient and affordable shipping options,” OneRail CEO and Founder Bill Catania said in a news release, noting that 30 percent of ecommerce sales go through a return process. “Improving the customer experience and unit economics for product returns is now center stage.”
Growth continues
OneRail had a steep period of growth in 2020, as its last-mile services aligned perfectly with an explosive growth in home delivery needs because of the pandemic.
The growth allowed the company to move into an 18,000-square-foot facility and hire dozens of people to surpass 100 last year.
That was months before the company announced in August of 2021 an investment round of $9 million.
OneRail now provides a network of delivery drivers who execute deliveries of goods from clients in a wide range of industries, including Tire Kingdom, Skullcandy and Menards and others.
The returns industry in 2022 saw more than $816 billion in merchandise returned, which was more than twice that of 2020.
“Efficiency and sustainability are key tenets for OneRail and Inmar,” said Dan Nevin, General Manager of Inmar Post-Purchase Solutions in the release. “By combining our returns initiation software and thousands of return drop-off locations with Inmar Intelligence’s nationwide network of return processing centers and OneRail’s OmniPoint platform, we’re providing the most cost-effective and sustainable returns services in the marketplace.”