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There's never been a better time to start a delivery business than in the age of online shopping and ecommerce. However, dealing with the financial, legal and practical aspects of launching your own company can be challenging.
In this guide, we'll break down everything you need to consider to get your delivery business up and running.
A delivery business specialises in transporting and distributing goods from a source to its designated destination. Examples of delivery businesses include parcel deliveries, restaurant home deliveries, supermarkets and grocery deliveries, or flower shop deliveries.
Creating a business plan before starting your delivery venture can avoid headaches down the line. A business plan can help focus your idea so you know what needs to be done. Moreover, you'll understand what the potential costs and opportunities are.
Whilst creating your business plan, you'll need to consider a niche for your delivery business. The most successful businesses focus on catering to a specific customer instead of trying to handle everything haphazardly.
Which niche you choose will affect the clients you contact, the transportation methods you invest in and the staff you hire. Some ideas include:
Once you understand your niche, you'll want to figure out how to best serve their needs. To do this, you'll need to consider various transportation methods. The delivery method you choose will depend on the products your business will deliver. Some examples of such methods include:
Your delivery business doesn't need to exclusively use one method of transport. For example, you might consider using scooters and bicycles.
Now that you're clear on the type of delivery business you want to start, you'll need to decide on a business structure. In Australia, there are three common business structures:
Once you have chosen a structure that works for your business, you'll need to register for an Australian Business Number (ABN). If the income of the business is over $75,000, you will need to register for goods and services tax (GST).
Running a delivery business in Australia can be fairly straightforward. However, to ensure things run smoothly, you'll need to get the right legal documents in place.
Some documents to consider include:
If you're still unsure about what legal documents your business needs, getting advice from an expert lawyer can help. This way you can start your new venture with the right business structure, tax information and necessary insurance.
To stay competitive and deliver the best service to your customers, you'll need to invest in equipment, software and staff.
The most important piece of equipment for a delivery business is your transportation method. However, there are other things you might need. These include:
Important software for delivery businesses will include:
You may decide to start the delivery business by yourself. However, over time if you want to scale up the operation, you'll need to hire staff. How many couriers you take on will depend on the number of orders you receive and the geographical area you cover.
When hiring couriers you'll need to consider the following:
Once you've set up your company structure, invested in equipment and hired staff, you'll want to focus on growing the business. To grow sales, you'll need to attract more customers. There are various ways to promote your business, these include:
How much you charge your customers will depend on the services you offer. For example, same-day delivery may cost more than standard delivery. Moreover, delivering flowers might require more preparation and therefore cost more than delivering small parcels.
Most delivery businesses calculate their charges based on:
The average cost charged by delivery businesses for parcels are as follows:
Type | Average cost |
International (standard parcels) | $25 - $85 |
Domestic | $9 |
Same day (standard parcels) | $12 - $30 |
Overnight shipping | $15 - $80 |
Source: Oneflare
If people are using your delivery services to ship urgent items, documents or packages, then the average cost can amount to:
City | Average cost |
Adelaide | $85 - $330 |
Brisbane | $70 - $240 |
Canberra | $65 - $150 |
Darwin | $65 - $320 |
Hobart | $60 - $125 |
Melbourne | $85 - $265 |
Perth | $65 - $220 |
Sydney | $65 - $275 |
Source: Oneflare
How do delivery companies make money?
Delivery companies make their money by charging a fee for each package they deliver. The potential to make good money relies on delivery volume. A company needs to deliver enough packages to cover their expenditure and make a profit.
How many hours do couriers work?
Delivery work is flexible. Owning your own business means that you can set your hours and take on as much or as little work as you like.
Is a delivery business stable?
Determining whether a delivery business is stable depends on the products the business is delivering. However, as a whole, the delivery sector is projected to grow to $6.1 billion in the next year. As online sales and ecommerce boom, so too will delivery businesses.
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