Dive Brief:
- Jitsu has expanded its last-mile delivery services to the Detroit metropolitan area, the parcel carrier announced in an emailed news release last week.
- The company previously known as AxleHire now offers same-day and next-day delivery services in 23 U.S. metro areas, working with brands like American Eagle, HelloFresh and Nespresso.
- To support its Detroit operations, Jitsu opened a sortation center at Means Logistics Park in Highland Park, Michigan. From the facility, gig drivers and contractors deliver packages to end customers in the area.
Dive Insight:
The Midwest is becoming a competitive region for Jitsu and other alternative parcel carriers looking to gain share from delivery giants FedEx and UPS. Better Trucks and Pitney Bowes recently expanded their Midwest shipping services, and OnTrac aims to launch in the Chicago metropolitan area in July.
"We have just seen exceptional demand in the Midwest," Jitsu CEO Raj Ramanan said in an interview with Supply Chain Dive.
Ramanan said the carrier's latest market launch addresses shipper demand for service in the Motor City, and it also synergizes with the company's existing delivery presence in Chicago. Jitsu aims to expand into additional Midwest markets soon, with Ramanan noting that Cleveland, Indianapolis and Columbus, Ohio, are among the cities customers have expressed interest in Jitsu covering.
Similar to its Northeast approach, Jitsu is quickly growing its base of cities in the Midwest to help the company become a more attractive delivery option in the marketplace, Ramanan added.
"Right now we cover 40% of the country," Ramanan said. "I think we add more value to our customers to get that up to 50, 60, 70%."
Jitsu seeks to grow Midwest presence
Beyond new Midwest markets, the Southeast is also on Jitsu's expansion roadmap. However, there needs to be enough demand for the company to debut in several metro areas, rather than just one market in the region, according to Ramanan.
"We don't want to do a one-off if we do that," the CEO said. "We're going to put down five locations at once and make sure we have the client demand to go do that."
Jitsu's early client base centered around meal kit providers but has since expanded its presence in other industries like apparel, wine and healthcare. Ramanan said he wants to see more volume growth in those categories.
"Vertical diversification and improving the mousetrap in new verticals is very important to me, and it's something that we're really proud of," he said.
