When a customer walks through the aisles of a store and selects a product on the shelf, you might assume it’s because of advertising or packaging design. But brand loyalty begins long before that moment: It starts with availability. 38% of consumers say they check multiple retailers’ websites specifically to verify product availability before making a purchase. When products are consistently in stock, they earn space in a customer’s mind. Reliability drives recognition.
Keeping products on the shelf requires a resilient supply chain. Today, though, many CPG retailers overlook their supply chain as a competitive advantage. Rather than investing in modern technology, 61% of executives report using fragmented, legacy systems. These systems obscure critical information like supplier delays, production slowdowns, and inventory bottlenecks before the logistics teams can intervene. Ultimately, the impact hits the shelf and erodes customer trust.
Retailers need real-time, upstream visibility throughout the first, middle, and last mile, to keep shelves stocked. Uber Freight’s supply chain expertise, combined with our advanced technology, gives CPG retail brands the end-to-end visibility they need to anticipate disruptions, optimize inventory, ensure on-time delivery, and maintain customer loyalty.
First and middle mile: Turning complexity into control
You’ve probably seen it before: A late vendor shipment throws off your replenishment plan, and by the time the trucks reach the distribution center, dock doors are backed up, crews are idle, and appointments need to be rescheduled.
For major retailers like Walmart, Target, and Amazon, real-time, upstream visibility at every touchpoint along the first and middle mile helps mitigate the impact of delays or miscommunications, so products are on the shelf when customers look for them. Today’s tools give retail teams complete inbound visibility, including:
Supplier readiness validated 48 hours in advance
Dock slots pre-booked, matched to inbound loads, and crews scheduled accordingly
Real-time tracking of inbound shipments, with exception alerts for any delay
Pre-emptive alternate routing or carrier capacity allocation ahead of surge windows
This type of visibility empowers shippers to intervene early when problems arise by rescheduling, consolidating, or redirecting shipments before they cause downstream disruption. Uber Freight’s Transportation Management System (TMS) unifies supplier collaboration and inbound logistics to provide live status updates, while the Control Tower acts as a command center for every shipment, providing a real-time view across lanes, modes, and carriers. Our managed transportation teams proactively monitor loads, follow up with carriers, and reconcile data in real time to keep inbound products flowing to distribution centers.
For AutoZone, which operates more than 7,000 stores across North America, this level of visibility has been transformative. “Automatic tracking helps our team avoid constantly checking on carriers. It frees us to really expand our horizons beyond the day-to-day,” says Dylan Schleicher, Domestic Logistics Manager. After 25 years of partnership, Uber Freight remains central to AutoZone’s data-driven logistics network, enabling them to reliably deliver to every store.
Last mile: Delivering precision to earn trust
In the direct-to-consumer era, the last mile defines a brand’s reputation. Consumers expect “Amazon-grade” delivery experiences that are fast, predictable, and transparent. When nearly three-quarters of US direct-to-consumer (DTC) shoppers say delivery speed is their top priority in deciding where to shop, reliably getting products to the customer’s front door is critical for every retailer today. Yet many shippers still struggle to meet these rising expectations while managing scale, cost, and accountability.
Uber Freight’s End-to-End Logistics solution combines one of the largest and most flexible delivery networks with advanced technology to help leading retailers and DTC brands move packages from warehouse to doorstep with speed. From first-mile pickup to returns management, this is how we provide a single, connected delivery ecosystem:
First mile: Move goods to receiving warehouses and national fulfillment centers across the US using Uber Freight’s multimodal carrier network
Middle mile: Distribute to regional facilities, sortation centers, and retail locations with the strength and reliability of our extensive over-the-road carrier network. Uber Freight sortation experts optimize package flow and density as needed.
Last mile: We provide flexible, scalable transportation options to help you move and track packages from storefront to doorstep, with the ability to tap into national and regional carriers
Returns: The same connected network allows you to arrange for pickup and delivery of returns to your preferred post office, distribution center, courier, or retail destination
Within this ecosystem, our Parcel Transportation Management System (PTMS) orchestrates every package for optimal cost and speed, selects the right carrier, tracks progress in real time, and maintains full visibility across teams and customers.
By combining network reach with intelligent automation, Uber Freight turns delivery into a brand advantage. Transparency and predictability keep orders fulfilled and shelves stocked, and reinforce customer confidence.
Continuous improvement: Transforming data into strategy
Visibility is powerful, but only if it leads to better decisions. Many CPG retailers can see where shipments are, yet still struggle to use that information to prevent recurring issues.
Uber Freight’s managed transportation team helps shippers close that gap. By analyzing fine data, order timing, and customer segmentation trends, our experts pinpoint root causes and design smarter strategies to prevent repeat disruptions.
A leading pet products retailer used Uber Freight’s managed transportation expertise to evaluate its inbound and outbound logistics, phasing in improvements that enabled smarter routing, reduced transportation spend by millions, and streamlined store deliveries across hundreds of locations. And a national hardware retailer used Uber Freight’s TMS insights to improve fleet utilization. By identifying why vendor backhauls were being rejected and optimizing routes, the company boosted tender acceptance and increased backhaul revenue, while improving collaborative problem-solving across the entire logistics team.
Our supply chain specialists and data scientists translate performance insights into action by rebalancing networks around peak cycles and measuring ROI along the way. The result is a supply chain that’s optimized for resilience, growth, and dependable delivery.
Reliability is the foundation of brand trust
In today’s retail climate, customer loyalty is business-critical: Some research suggests a 5% increase in loyalty can drive a more than 25% increase in profitability. That loyalty is hard to earn—and it’s fragile. For younger generations in particular, one bad experience can cause a customer to move on from their favorite brands.
When CPG retailers are balancing strict delivery windows and unpredictable demand, reliability becomes the ultimate differentiator.
Uber Freight delivers that reliability by making every link in the supply chain visible, from the first mile to the final delivery. With real-time insights, proactive management, and one connected network, retail leaders can deliver on promises and maintain customer trust.
See what complete visibility looks like. Learn how Uber Freight helps CPG retail brands achieve upstream control and downstream reliability.