How a pet products retailer saved nearly $4M through a data-driven logistics partnership with Uber Freight
Company snapshot
Customer profile
Industry: Retail
Size: 50,000+ employees
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Overview
A pet products retailer owns and operates a chain of more than 1,650 pet superstores in the U.S. and Canada, selling pet products, services, and small pets.
Opportunity
Modernizing transportation for a store-centric retail model
A pet products retailer owns and operates 100% of its stores across the U.S. and Canada. This end-to-end control helps the team maintain an exceptional experience for their customers.
In 2023, the retailer began to modernize its logistics capabilities as part of a broader operational expansion. In the process, the team identified the need for a better Transportation Management System (TMS). Their existing system lacked the functionality to support evolving reporting, carrier management, data integration, and outbound delivery needs.
In searching for a TMS, the company saw the opportunity to unify its inbound and outbound orchestration to gain better visibility on every shipment. The team also had the opportunity to better manage and monitor carrier performance to improve coordination and increase on-time deliveries. Finally, they wanted to find a partner to handle day-to-day execution so internal experts could focus on network strategy. The retailer selected Uber Freight because the managed transportation team, backed by the TMS, could help them meet those goals.
Solution
Empowering with precision and transparency
The Uber Freight TMS now serves as the company’s operational backbone for planning, routing, execution, and financial visibility. The platform enables precise financial forecasting and real-time cost tracking, while consolidating data across inbound and outbound operations to better align shipments with store demand.
The retailer integrates Uber Freight’s data directly into its Analytics Warehouse, creating dashboards enriched by the transportation management team's guidance on metric design and interpretation. This shared data model allows both teams to act quickly on insights and drive improvements. The Uber Freight Carrier Suite also provides the company with a comprehensive view of carrier performance, while the Exchange: Spot process manages non-contracted freight and identifies lanes suited for long-term agreements.
Together, the retailer and Uber Freight’s teams work to continuously refine routing and capacity allocation across the company’s dedicated carrier network, ensuring the right trucks, lanes, and schedules meet delivery windows through the most optimal design.
Results
Discovering measurable savings, stronger service, and greater trust
With Uber Freight, the retailer has achieved $4.1 million in outbound transportation savings year-to-date, driven by smarter routing, higher utilization, and optimized spot market management. The company has also seen a 10% increase in truck utilization and a 3% improvement across all service levels since the partnership began.
$4.1M
in outbound transportation savings year-to-date
10%
increase in truck utilization
3%
improvement across all service levels
These benefits are empowering the company to accelerate current initiatives and strategically advance future projects across its broader network. For example, by testing improved store delivery schedules, the retailer is enhancing its customer-facing labor hours, ensuring more team members are available to serve guests, improve in-store experiences, and drive customer satisfaction.
The company’s internal teams also now have a far deeper understanding of their logistics network than ever before. With Uber Freight managing day-to-day execution, the retailer has redeployed internal logistics staff to higher-value initiatives, including long-term network planning, supplier collaboration, and improvement projects tied to growth goals.
Built on precision, trust, and continuous improvement, the partnership with Uber Freight has resulted in:
Shared financial visibility: The company provides Uber Freight with weekly transportation financials, enabling precise, real-time performance tracking.
Strategic alignment: Uber Freight now participates in annual business planning as a trusted advisor.
Relationship-first culture: Close collaboration and open communication allow both teams to resolve issues quickly and align on operational changes.
Real-time adaptability: Capacity constraints are rapidly addressed through joint analysis, leading to faster decision cycles and smoother peak-season performance.
Future-focused expansion: The company plans to explore intermodal options for inbound shipments in 2026, targeting cost benefits without compromising service.
Uber Freight helped the retailer enhance their multistop store delivery process, which has been so effective that they plan to replicate it across the non-transportation parts of the organization. The collaboration between teams has established a repeatable framework for cost savings and service improvement that strengthens the in-store experience for every customer.