DHL actualy admitted it!!!!

[Box-Hauler]

No, Airborne was not into the over sized freight like Emery or BAX, they concentrated on B2B only. They wanted to pick up a big load of next day air from a business and deliver it next day to a business somewhere else. Airborne did not want to waist time with grandma's cookies to little billy. They had a niche and filled it nicely, I do believe that they could have grown more than they did and been a real third competitor. As for the cargo doors, after they had 5 DC8 on the ramp they should have made the commitment to doing the doors, even if they did not need them for the C containers, the planes would have been more valuable in the market.

 

[Publishers]

The difference between where you are coming from and I am is in what is the objective.
FEDEX bought Flying Tigers for their rights into China and other spots when they knew that they would not get them in a reasonable time on their own. That was the objective, not to get into the heavy freight business. If for some reasons, those rights had suddenly gone away, regardless of the profit or not of the freight business, the deal would have been a failure.
That is what I am saying here. The objective was the express package business and it is in that business that most of the expense is, not the flying part. To compete with any established company that has a pick up and delivery infrastructure, you need to have an nearly equivilent infrastructure in place and you will bleed heavily until you get the volume. They did not and so they are giving up. In Europe and other places, they have that infrastructure and volume.
I know Airborne was successful but today, it is probably harder than ever to be a niche player as so many customers want the total solution. I also remember when Airborne got the IBM deal and the boxes did not fit well into the C containers.
Everyone wants the high yield business. That is the objective.

 

[Big Beer Belly]

No, Airborne was not into the over sized freight like Emery or BAX, they concentrated on B2B only. They wanted to pick up a big load of next day air from a business and deliver it next day to a business somewhere else. Airborne did not want to waist time with grandma's cookies to little billy. They had a niche and filled it nicely,

I'm a bit confused by your post (and that of others) referencing B2B as a niche market that Airborne had somehow cornered. B2B is by no means a niche. If it is, then I'm Kris Kringle... ho, ho, ho.

I recall reading just a few years ago that 80% of UPS's daily volume of about 15 million packages was B2B. That's some niche! It's a common misconception that UPS is primarily B2C. As internet shopping increases, I'm sure the B2C market will expand but there's no question that UPS's bread and butter is business to business. Airborne was the cheaper B2B offering in most markets as I understand it. Perhaps that had something to do with their ultimate demise?

BBB

 

[shooter]

I'm a bit confused by your post (and that of others) referencing B2B as a niche market that Airborne had somehow cornered. B2B is by no means a niche. If it is, then I'm Kris Kringle... ho, ho, ho.

I recall reading just a few years ago that 80% of UPS's daily volume of about 15 million packages was B2B. That's some niche! It's a common misconception that UPS is primarily B2C. As internet shopping increases, I'm sure the B2C market will expand but there's no question that UPS's bread and butter is business to business. Airborne was the cheaper B2B offering in most markets as I understand it. Perhaps that had something to do with their ultimate demise?

BBB

You almost solved your own confusion. Low cost B2B is a niche when it is all you cater to. Now that I have your attention, I want a new laptop that does not burn my freakin' lap; a full 6 degree motion fight simulator in my garage; throw a kitchen remodel in there for my wife; a Caribbean cruise would be cool and throw in a new leather jacket. If you can't come through for me, Kris, how about just a better world where people are more understanding?

 

[Big Beer Belly]

You almost solved your own confusion. Low cost B2B is a niche when it is all you cater to. Now that I have your attention, I want a new laptop that does not burn my freakin' lap; a full 6 degree motion fight simulator in my garage; throw a kitchen remodel in there for my wife; a Caribbean cruise would be cool and throw in a new leather jacket. If you can't come through for me, Kris, how about just a better world where people are more understanding?

LOL! :laugh:

Merry Christmas Shooter!

PS... God knows it doesn't take much to confuse me these days...

 

[shooter]

And to you and your family. :beer:

 

[mxer]

To add a small bit to the ABX niche idea: with the internet and emails, that niche basically was gone for ABX by about 2000. Thats why the growth came to a stop. (and the new hire classes stopped around August) Then came the one and only quarterly loss. ABX admitted that they had basically been caught unprepared for the changes in the market place. That is where leadership and vision would have been nice. Joe doesn't have it. JG can't even spell it. As an example, I asked what the business plan was to get jobs back after the first post 2001 furloughs. I was told by MV that they were hoping for another strike by the, then negotiating, UPS pilots "because it really seemed to help business last time". Of course, sticking around for all these years after that, my fault. It was a good ride that will be missed.

 

[FreightBumper]

To add a small bit to the ABX niche idea: with the internet and emails, that niche basically was gone for ABX by about 2000. Thats why the growth came to a stop. (and the new hire classes stopped around August) Then came the one and only quarterly loss. ABX admitted that they had basically been caught unprepared for the changes in the market place. That is where leadership and vision would have been nice. Joe doesn't have it. JG can't even spell it. As an example, I asked what the business plan was to get jobs back after the first post 2001 furloughs. I was told by MV that they were hoping for another strike by the, then negotiating, UPS pilots "because it really seemed to help business last time". Of course, sticking around for all these years after that, my fault. It was a good ride that will be missed.

Ah, MV, he is a mouthpiece that isn't allowed to think about what he is saying before he says it. His bosses have always had him say the dumb things so they wouldn't look any worse than they already do. It is hard to soar with the eagles when your management is a bunch of turkeys.

 

[b707guy]

Gosh, hoping another carrier will go on strike doesn't qualify as a business plan??? Back to school for me!

 

[mxer]

Sadly though, isn't that the business plan that we have seen. They didn't have a plan of where to take this company. We thought that they got lucky by hitching on to the DHL wagon. Unfortunately, DHL my have had an idea of where they wanted the company to go, but didn't have the know how to get there or the common sense to listen to others that could have helped. ABX may not have leadership or vision, but they do have some in the right positions that could have made the day to day decisions that could have made this work. My opinion of course.