How to open a courier delivery service from scratch. Great idea for a business “from scratch” - courier service Courier services as a business

How to open a delivery service: 5 popular delivery options, tips for attracting investment, cost and profitability of this type of business.

Costs for organizing a business: from 400,000 rubles.
Delivery service payback period: 10-12 months.

Delivery business is gaining momentum every day, as it does not require such large investments like producing goods or opening an establishment catering.

Another advantage is the fact that it is not so complicated in organization and design.

A delivery company can provide transportation services, such as oversized cargo, parcels, letters, or enter into an agreement with a company (more than one) and deliver goods produced by it.

In addition to the advantages, there are a number of nuances that you need to understand before thinking about how to open a delivery service.

First, you need to decide which goods will be supplied and to whom.

For example, you can initially deliver orders to your home in one locality.

This good option for a beginner to start because it does not require a large number of vehicles.

And if the business prospers, it will be possible to expand the scope of activity to the desired scale.

How to open a delivery service and what are the requirements?

As already stated, this industry businesses are not as difficult to set up as most others.

There are minimum requirements, once you understand them, you can open a business delivering flowers, parcels, valuable cargo and other items.

Choosing premises for a delivery service office

Interesting fact:
The story has survived to this day about the most iconic envoy of early antiquity - Phillipides, who brought a message about the Battle of Marathon to Athens. He ran a distance of almost 40 km and died of exhaustion after fulfilling his duty. His feat became a prerequisite for the founding of marathon racing.

As with any full-fledged enterprise, the first step is to rent office space.

Where it will be located, in a large building in the city center or in a residential area, is not so important.

There are courier services without an office.

But, as practice shows, this is only at the “embryo” stage.

After all, when expanding such a business, there will be a need to enter into contracts with reputable companies.

The absence of an office can negatively affect this partnership, and in general cause a lot of inconvenience.

Selecting transport for delivery service

The next, but no less important point, will be transport.

There is nothing to do in the courier business without transport - this is a fact.

But the presence of a vehicle with considerable dimensions will increase the number of delivered parcels.

When choosing, you should take into account the expected volume of orders and the available budget.

Personnel and customer interaction

An important part of organizing the idea of opening a delivery service is finding suitable personnel.

It is necessary to hire couriers who will deliver parcels and staff to work in the office.

To improve communication, you can open a hotline telephone line or a website where you can always track what stage the order (package) is at.

It is equally important to set up communication between the office and the couriers, since customers who are expecting a parcel will first call the office and ask what the condition of the order is and how long to wait for it.

How to register a delivery service?

You can register an enterprise as a private enterprise (PE) or with limited liability (), but registration with the tax office will be a little more complicated.

Since recently, courier activities cannot be subject to a single tax on imputed income; taxation of delivery businesses occurs on a general basis.

But this should not affect net income, provided that the business is successful.

Registration in local authorities authorities, and obtaining all the necessary approvals will cost approximately 15,000 rubles.

To open a courier service you do not need many documents, only information about the founders, the physical address of the company and its property (enterprise fund).

How does a delivery business depend on the city in which it is located?

When organizing a courier service in big city, there is no need to provide diverse services; you can simply choose a certain area and deliver only a certain type of goods.

You can implement the following delivery service options:

cooperation with online stores;
cooperation with restaurants or (most often, such establishments have their own couriers);
delivery of correspondence;
water delivery business, flowers;

If the location is sparsely populated, the intra-city delivery business will not bring as much profit as we would like.

Therefore, it makes sense to engage in transportation between cities, as this will greatly expand the range of activities.

It is most profitable to cooperate with furniture manufacturing factories, transport it to the place of sale, and possibly to the buyer’s home.

You can also deliver things while moving.

For such large-scale cargo transportation, you need appropriate transport, and more than one.

But first, you can try smaller deliveries.

How to choose transport for a courier service?

Any vehicle for starting a delivery business is suitable, from a scooter to a truck, it all depends on the type of transportation.

You don’t often see a driver with his own truck, so for large-scale deliveries between populated areas, you will have to buy a car.

To section financial settlements They contribute not only the cost of purchasing a vehicle, but also the cost of its maintenance, as well as gasoline consumption.

Gasoline consumption depends on the following factors:

vehicle condition (serviceability, mileage);
type of vehicle (truck, passenger car);
driver's driving style (fast, slow);
weather conditions;
road condition.

Approximate calculation of gasoline consumption of trucks and cars

Obviously, gasoline consumption depends on the car model and its engine.

But, based on the table, you can roughly calculate the difference in gasoline payments for cars and.

Required personnel for delivery service

It is most profitable to hire employees (couriers) who have their own transport.

As mentioned above, it can be either a car or truck, or a scooter or motorcycle, since small orders do not require a large interior.

For example, deliveries such as flowers, or sports nutrition, can generally be carried out using public transport.

For this type of assignment, it is best to hire students, as they will cope well with the task and can be hired part-time or choose a flexible schedule.

If we are talking about large-sized orders, starting from bottles with drinking water, and ending with refrigerators, you will need at least a minibus.

Since it will be necessary to deliver water to several recipients at once, and it is more profitable to deliver equipment to at least several clients in one trip.

In addition to couriers, you will need an accountant, a call center operator who will answer incoming calls and provide the necessary information (a secretary can handle this task).

How to attract investment to open a delivery service?

Nowadays, finding someone who will invest money in starting a business is not so difficult.

There are many sites (exchanges) for searching investors, which they themselves go to to find a promising project for their investments.

Naturally, no one wants to invest money in an unprofitable enterprise.

Therefore, you need to present your business plan as best as possible.

It is worth indicating all the nuances and aspects of the proposed project, identifying the benefits to the investor himself, calculating the approximate payback period and receiving the first income.

Describe in detail the services that the company will provide.

Also, the amount of investment must be clearly indicated, and a report must be provided on what and how much will be spent.

The knowledge and experience of the founder (founder) of the company in this area plays a significant role.

How much does it cost to open a delivery business?

Regardless of what kind of transportation you do (small or large), the costs for office and advertising will be almost the same in any case.

It is worth adding website creation to additional services; this will cost from 10,000 rubles.

Regular investments

The remaining expenses will go to the purchase of cars (if there is a need for freight transport), wages to employees, gasoline costs, etc.

In the video below, experienced entrepreneurs talk about the features of running a delivery business:

Profitability of starting a delivery business

Before you open a delivery business, you need to understand that competition in this area is very high.

After all, in addition to delivery services, there are many private couriers.

However, despite the competition, the profitability of such an enterprise is about 25%, depending on the type of activity.

The company should generate income within three months.

If there is no profit during this period, this means that the company is operating at a loss.

The payback period will take about 10-12 months, subject to success.

As in any commercial activities, you shouldn’t start with something big, such enterprises often go bankrupt.

You can build a shipping empire starting with a small flower delivery business, and expand the scope of work every year.

This will speed up the payback period, reduce risks, and profits will begin to come as soon as possible.

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Opening a courier delivery service attracts entrepreneurs because it does not require large investments or experience in this field. However, this type of business, like any other, has its pitfalls and nuances. In the business plan we will highlight the main aspects of this type of activity.

Project goal: making a profit by providing courier services to businesses and the public.

The attractiveness of the courier services business is determined by the following factors:

Low barriers to entry into the market.
Constantly increasing demand for this type services.
Lack of any qualification requirements.
Wide opportunities for business development and scaling.

The amount of initial investment is 149,000 rubles.

The break-even point is reached after 4 months of operation.

The payback period is 7 months.

The average monthly profit of the 1st year of project implementation is 43,726 rubles.

2. Description of the business, product or service

3. Description of the sales market

Every day, many organizations and people use courier services. Before opening a delivery service, it is necessary to determine which market segment will have to be served. Potential clients of the courier service are:

online stores with delivery of goods;
flower shops;
cafes and restaurants;
publishing houses;
bookstores.

In the age of technology, online shopping is becoming increasingly popular. However, not every organization offering delivery services has its own staff of couriers. Most online stores resort to outsourcing, and they conclude contracts not with market giants, but with local small firms.

Another large segment is flower shops. Many of them are located in social networks and offer delivery services. Without having their own courier on staff, they will happily become your regular customers.

Today there are no more or less large city, in which there is no large quantity pizzerias, cafes, restaurants, pancake houses and other various catering establishments. Most likely, the owners of such establishments will not refuse to have additional income from delivering their dishes to customers' homes. Therefore, the courier service can provide its delivery services.

Almost all large organizations need couriers to deliver various packages of documents to some public services. An example could be tax office. The courier from the delivery service will not only be able to deliver necessary documents, but also stand in line with everyone else. Thanks to such services, clients will be able to save their time, and you, as a business owner, will receive additional profit.

4. Sales and marketing

5. Production plan

The main goal of the project is to open a courier service and maximize its profits.

Review of the real estate market to select the optimal premises.

Requirements for placing a beauty elephant:

Location: can be either the city center or a residential area;
Room area 10-15 m2;
It is advisable to have parking.

Registration of a legal entity.

Activities can be carried out as individual- IP, so legal entity- OOO.

Opening a current account.

6. Organizational structure

Staffing:

manager - 1,
couriers - 2-4,

The total number of employees is 3-5 people.

As a rule, managers in such small company is the business owner himself. The salary is set at 30,000 rubles. The wages of couriers are piecework and amount to 30% of completed orders. In the first 2 months, it will be enough to hire 2 couriers, but with an increase in clients, the staff will need to be expanded.

It is necessary to approach recruitment responsibly. After all, only serious and diligent employees will help you get good reviews about the company as a whole. If you do not have experience in the provision of courier services, then it is all the more advisable to hire professionals in this matter who will help you set up the entire process and organize correct work with clients.

Before official employment, arrange probation at least for a week. This will help you understand how the future employee relates to the client, whether he is capable of providing the level of service you have specified.

Basic requirements for recruitment:

Having your own car;
Competent Russian written and oral speech;
Responsibility;
Communication skills;
Activity;
Reliability.

Fixed expenses	Salary	Number of employees	Sum	Average salary per month per employee
Supervisor	20 000	1	20 000	32 822
Courier	9 500	4	38 000	25 528
Insurance premiums			17 400
Total payroll			75 400

7. Financial plan

8. Risk factors

Before entering this business, you should know what dangers may lie in wait on the path to success. When opening a courier service, it is important to remember the following difficulties.

Today, courier services operate in almost every city. They are an intermediary between the sender of the goods and its recipient. Creating your own courier service is a great option to start your own business.

There are a few key points to consider when starting your own courier service. Firstly, rural areas and small towns are not suitable for this business. Secondly, you should determine the specifics of the goods being transported. It is obvious that the delivery of documents and transportation medical supplies- different topics. Thirdly, consider whether you need a car for courier delivery. If yes - which one? A pedestrian courier can also handle the delivery of documents within one or two districts. And delivery of large parcels will obviously require a car. In addition, the issue of driver remuneration and related expenses needs to be resolved. One option is to enter into a long-term contract with a taxi service or hire a courier driver with a personal car.

An important point in the work of a courier service is the dispatcher, who must be available around the clock. The majority of deliveries are carried out during the daytime, but the customer can order delivery at night. By the way, 24-hour operation will set your company apart from its competitors.

You can start a business alone. At first, you will be able to perform the functions of dispatcher, courier and owner in one person. But when the business begins to operate at full capacity, you cannot do without assistants. The staff usually includes a dispatcher, couriers, drivers, a secretary and an accountant. If your fleet will consist of several cars, you should think about mechanics. And when delivering large items, loaders will also be required.

The work of couriers can be performed directly by people with low or no qualifications. The main requirement is diligence and accuracy. All personnel must be able to work with documentation, and drivers and couriers must be able to easily navigate the city.

Courier service work

In order for the courier service to work efficiently and smoothly, an office is needed. Of course, at the first stage you can do without it by accepting orders by phone. But if you want to become the owner of a reputable business, it is better to rent at least a small office space.

To promote a business you definitely need advertising. Place advertisements in newspapers, magazines and the Internet. One of the easiest and most economical options is to distribute leaflets in well-traveled places.

The cost of courier services depends on the time spent on delivery, the quantity and weight of the cargo. It is possible to achieve the minimum level of profitability of this business only if you have ten cars and complete sixty orders per day. Despite this, more and more cars are appearing to deliver sushi and pizza to customers.

One possible problem is attempts to reduce the cost of automobile delivery. For example, some restaurants fulfill an order if its cost is more than eight hundred rubles. In addition, business development is hampered by traffic jams on central streets.
In order for the start of a business to be successful, it is profitable to open a courier service together with postal services. Since newspapers and magazines go to specific addresses, the customer base is, in fact, ready and quite suitable for distribution advertising products, letters and gifts. This approach will significantly increase business profitability.

The work of the courier service is almost independent of the season. But there are some bursts of activity on holidays when there are many orders for the delivery of flowers and gifts. Plus, the urgency of delivery, for which you can charge a higher rate.

Courier service clients

As a rule, there are no problems with clients. Even with faxes and email paper documents are still popular. Banks, law firms and other organizations sending papers to partners - all these are your potential clients. And also this manufacturing enterprises who need special delivery. You can choose narrow specialization and deliver goods from online stores. The main thing is to convince them to use the services of your courier service.

Delivery services can be offered to catering establishments. But for this, couriers or drivers must have sanitary records, transport must have a sanitary passport, and the dishes themselves must have a safety certificate. Today, many companies use the services of courier services, so there should be no problems with clientele.

Operating time client base It will take some time, you need to be prepared for this. And considering that companies and organizations are constantly closing, moving, changing phone numbers, it is important to correct this information.

Starting a business from scratch is difficult, but the money invested in a courier service pays off quickly. Before opening, think through all the details, including the pros and cons for you personally. Develop detailed business plan. And when the first success comes, continue to work in the chosen direction. Attract new customers, expand business contacts. This is very important for business development.

Successful own business- the dream of many whose plans include a stable and high income. The courier delivery service is quite popular, but at the same time free niche. There is healthy competition in it, which allows you to offer customers something that other companies do not have.

This area will be discussed in more detail in this material.

Advantages and disadvantages of activity

When starting any project, you will be a follower. Someone must have done this before you. It is important to treat this correctly. If this person has already opened a similar business, he probably made mistakes. Your task is to make the most of your previous experience and avoid falling into the same rake again.

Advantages

Delivery service in demand and assumes the presence of potential clients. People need your company's services. Having a wide field of clients, it is important to start interacting with them correctly, and the first profit is in your pocket.
The advantages of this type of activity also include minimum investment. To get started, all you need is to have the Internet and a phone at hand. You can start your first steps in the courier business as a partner of a store or offline platform, as well as within the territory of one city. Later, having received your first profit, you will have the opportunity to expand your project by hiring workers, concluding contracts and purchasing the necessary equipment.
Another advantage of this type of activity is wide range of specializations. Yours future company can position itself from different angles. This could be by land or air transportation, partnership with private company or large enterprise, delivery of press or large cargo, etc. It all depends on the needs of clients and current situation affairs in the services market. The main thing is that you can occupy any available niche.
IN personnel selection even a novice entrepreneur will not have problems. This genus activity does not require workers to have a specific education. All that is required from subordinates is responsibility and physical strength. This will greatly simplify your work in recruiting staff and help you save on wages.
Courier service does not require a special room. You can start work even without a warehouse. The main thing is to properly organize the process of cargo delivery, planning the route and keeping all costs to a minimum.

Flaws

As a leader, you will need patience and the ability to make quick decisions. Courier delivery is always possible appearance force majeure. While your staff will have a minimum of personnel, all significant decisions will be made by you. Learn to quickly find a way out of the current situation, negotiate and give instructions correctly.
Often in similar companies full-time employees can afford not to go to work. There are also a number of problems when the courier does not physically have time to get from one part of the city to another. Then you will need to quickly resolve the issue with replacement of personnel or staff replenishment.
When opening a service there is always risks: damage to someone else’s property, late or poor quality delivery. Many large companies still cannot eliminate such situations 100%. However, with strict control over the work of couriers and other employees, you can cope with this problem, forever winning the trust of the client.

Where should I start?

You should start a business by monitoring the situation on the market for such services. This way you can take an advantageous position in this niche with the least competition. Large populated areas are best suited for project development, but with the right approach, this idea can be implemented in small towns.
After analyzing the data received, you will need to decide on the specifics of the goods that will be delivered by the company. Will it be the transportation of documents, medications, etc.
The next step concerns the equipment. Answer the questions: do you need a car? If you deliver documents within small town or several areas, the courier can do this on foot. In the case of parcel delivery, you will need a car. You must clearly know what kind of car you need. This leads to a chain of questions about hiring a driver, paying him and related expenses. These problems can be solved in the early stages by concluding a long-term contract with a taxi or a driver with a personal car.
A dispatcher will be needed to receive applications. Again, in order to save money at the beginning of business development, you can combine the qualities of a manager and a dispatcher. Communication with clients should be around the clock. This form will make your service stand out from the rest.
When the business is operating at full scale and you have a fleet of vehicles at your disposal, you should think about hiring a mechanic and loaders of large items. As the number of clients grows and the volume of work increases, a secretary, accountant and other drivers and couriers will also be needed.

Interesting information about this type of activity is presented in the following video:

Business development options

The development of new technologies and the expansion of trade have provoked the demand for courier services. Today this niche is incredibly popular, and it can be developed in all sorts of directions. Here you must clearly decide what specialization your company will be and how large it will be. In the process, all this can be adjusted and gradually expand the circle of your clients, as well as the services provided:

A small courier company can deliver documentation and small parcels. Your potential clients are most often banks, law firms, and various types of organizations. It is most convenient to organize such work in a small area. one city or several villages. Nearby ones are also suitable areas of a large metropolis.
If you plan to work nationwide, then here the variations on the theme of the delivered cargo expand significantly. This can be either urgent delivery of newspapers, online store goods, or transportation of equipment.
A new level for delivery service – international. You can find a lot of information on the Internet about successful companies this kind. This can be either air delivery, land or water delivery. It all depends on the connections you have. You can stand out from your competitors by as soon as possible or additional services that other companies cannot provide.

Required documents and permits

You only need to complete the paperwork after your idea has been successfully tested. This provides a kind of guarantee that subsequent development costs will not go in vain, but will become an impetus for improving the business.

The form of enterprise required to open a courier service is LLC - limited liability company. In order to draw up contracts correctly, it does not hurt to acquire the services of a lawyer who will help in further questions documentation. Additionally, you should consider insurance for transported goods, especially if you work with hazardous substances.

Required Personnel

The staff is your support in doing business in the near future. Despite the fact that the specifics of the work do not require many special education, you should focus on qualities such as responsibility and diligence. Otherwise, this threatens to delay delivery times and affect the company’s reputation.

For a business in a small town you will need a small number of staff. They are based on a dispatcher, a courier driver and an accountant.

Without initial capital The duties of each position can be performed by a manager. Since the earnings will initially be small, you can do all the calculations yourself. In the future, you will need to resort to the services of specialists and acquire assistants.

Regarding payment wages, then, as a rule, it is paid from production - the amount of goods delivered. With an increase in the client base and orders, it will be possible to switch to daily or monthly payment labor.

How to find clients

Customers are the basis of any business. Main task– sell them your company’s services. You need to look for your first clients yourself. Offer courier services to shops, restaurants or other city institutions. Surely banks, lawyers or flower shops They need similar partners to help them promote their product and generate additional income.

You can build your business on the basis of an existing one, taking the role of an intermediary between the supplier and the direct buyer of a product or service.

Very current direction in the field of courier service became lunch delivery. If your city doesn’t have one yet, then feel free to count it among potential clients offices and branches various companies. The main thing is to provide your workers with sanitary passports, and the dishes themselves with safety certificates.

Don’t forget to advertise your company: make contacts, advertise in the newspaper, distribute leaflets and call potential partners. In the future, you will be able to deliver goods to shops, supermarkets or deliver their products to customers’ homes.

Business costs and profitability calculations

The profitability of the delivery service business is one of the highest. This is explained minimal investment and high cost of services. Additional savings on personnel, which is convenient when working in a small area, will further increase the profitability of a newly started business.

The normal income level is up to 90%. The standard conditions for such profit are an average delivery cost of 5-15 dollars. The price includes the cost of maintaining staff, the weight of the cargo, its value, gasoline, delivery speed and much more. The average number of orders per day ranges from 40 to 50. This will allow you to fully recoup all expenses for travel, staffing and advertising.

The investment amount ranges from 3 to 5 thousand dollars, provided that you have your own transport. However, working in small town, you can start with the delivery of small-sized cargo that the courier can carry on foot.

Organized courier service - source high income. It all depends on how you prioritize. Small calculations and step by step description creating a business will help you create a successful project that will pay dividends after the first month of work. The main thing is to give the client the opportunity to choose and offer something new on the market for services of this kind. Then, even in the face of competition, exchange rate fluctuations and other enemies big business you will be able to fully realize your idea.

Organizations daily need to send correspondence, goods and cargo using couriers. Therefore, debutant entrepreneurs are thinking about opening a courier delivery service, bypassing the existing pitfalls. In addition, to open and develop such a company you do not need huge financial investments.

Existing services do not fully satisfy the demand for goods delivery services, so this business is a popular area among novice businessmen.

There are often long delays in delivery of goods by mail. Good money is charged for urgency. Many people are starting to look for such a service, and some are thinking about how to open such a business.

Creating a goods delivery company: first steps

If you are a law-abiding entrepreneur, then you must follow the sequence when starting a business:

Initially, you need to open and visit the tax office to officially register the delivery company;
then - a bank in order to open a current account for its own service.

This is where the basic legal formalities for business end. The next stage is solving material issues, without which it is impossible to open a delivery company:

office;
equipment: computer, telephone, car;
advertising.

The ideal office is your own space. If you don’t have enough money to buy, then use rent.

How to open your own courier service from scratch

To open a delivery establishment, you don’t have to look for an office in the city center.

Without technical support The courier company will not be able to work. Computers, telephone and Internet connections are required, vehicles. Can be used own car or rent it out.

But it is impossible to open or organize a profitable delivery service business with one car. You need several cars, mopeds, scooters or bicycles. The latter will be useful during daytime traffic jams. An excellent solution is to hire couriers who have their own vehicles.

The territory served by couriers at first will be small. But if the delivery of orders occurs without the slightest delay, an open courier organization they will quickly find out. Carefully fulfilling the requirements of your first customers will turn them into permanent ones for your business. This will help generate profits and serve as good advertising for the delivery establishment.

If you want to open an international express delivery service, it is better to buy a franchise. They will help you write a plan for the development of your business, register your business and make it profitable.

Advertising

Any new company you decide to open needs advertising. To do this, create step by step plan advertising company your business. Don't skimp on a colorfully designed website with detailed information about the activities of the delivery establishment. Contact professionals who will create an Internet page that represents the company you have opened in a favorable light.

Customers may be attracted to a business card if it is made of high-quality paper, is pleasant to look at, and contains comprehensive information about the activities of this service. Having seen the meticulousness with which business cards are made, a person will become confident that his order is guaranteed increased attention. This will encourage customers to seek the services of such a service.

It is necessary to organize the dissemination of information about the courier company in accessible means mass media. Discuss your business or the fact that you are thinking of opening one with relatives, friends, and classmates. Often such conversations bring more popularity company than expensive advertising.

Courier service personnel

When thinking about setting up a courier service, be sure to consider the topic of hiring employees. To open and organize correctly successful business for the delivery of drinking bottled water, sushi, alcohol, barbecue, set lunch and other food products, you should hire a director, couriers, dispatcher, accountant, and technical staff.

Be especially careful when hiring employees. The company’s reputation and income depend on their interaction with customers. You need to develop instructions for customers and create a book of complaints on your website.

Couriers must have such qualities as punctuality, communication skills, tact, and diligence. Their responsibility is to deliver the goods safely and within the time period specified by the customer.

Many people believe that being a courier is not prestigious and this is a big disadvantage for your business. Therefore, the company needs to ensure that employees understand the value of their work. To prevent cases of missing money, it is best to enter into official employment contracts with the courier.

It is necessary to establish clear communication between employees of the organization, especially between the dispatcher and the courier. The dispatcher receives and registers orders, informs the delivery people about them, and is in touch with both parties simultaneously.

There will always be a need for a messenger

Despite the widespread electronic document management, no organization will be able to do without paper copies completely. Financial, legal and other firms need to constantly send correspondence to their partners. Industrial enterprises urgent delivery of any goods may also be required. This is a huge plus for your courier delivery business from scratch.

They may contact you if you have a well-organized delivery service.

There are delivery companies that only serve online stores. If you open a delivery business, it can bring good profits. In any city there are companies engaged in trading through online stores. Small firms do not have the ability to independently deliver their goods to customers. It is more profitable for them to contact a courier organization.

An interesting direction is servicing restaurants, pizzerias, shops that do not have the conditions for organizing own network delivery of goods to customers' homes. Similar business very profitable, since the demand for these services does not weaken. If the business is related to the transportation of products, couriers must obtain health certificates.

Separately, it is worth highlighting the delivery of flowers and gifts. The development of your courier business depends on you.

Use your imagination!

If you decide to open a business, you should remember that nice bonuses and discounts play a big role. Your company must be different from those of your competitors. It is necessary to come up with a “zest” for the service that will attract customers. Today, the business of delivering food and other goods includes a large number of different companies advertising the speed of transportation of goods, low prices, quality service. But this has long become boring. Customers want novelty.

The “trick” can be absolutely anything. Business can be influenced by female couriers with model appearance. With such a “twist” the number of male clients will greatly increase. If athletic, attractive young men appear among the messengers, it will become clear why the female contingent will choose your business.

A business idea for delivering small and large goods in a box is a great idea for attracting customers.

Create a catalog on the service’s website that will feature photographs of your charming workers and lovely female employees. In this case, when applying, the client can indicate a specific courier who will fulfill his order.

A non-standard offer for your business will be the ability to use a courier during a set period of time. This “rent” is profitable large clients those in need of constant delivery of various goods. In this case, only the amount of time required to transport orders is paid, and the courier is always nearby.

Introducing a night shift is a great idea. Such services operating around the clock are rare. Therefore, the ability to deliver at night will attract more customers.

Try to open a delivery service with a variety of “features”, thanks to which any customer will always want to contact you.

Business ideas -> Finance, consulting services, education

Courier service - right to the customer!

Courier service is a rapidly growing lately business of delivering correspondence or goods in the shortest possible time - “door to door” or from the customer’s door to the destination city.

Two absolute advantages of creating a courier service ( courier company) that can attract novice entrepreneurs to this business are a low level of initial start-up investments and a fairly wide field of activity. The choice of courier services is small, and delivery prices remain high. In addition, the services of Russian mail - the most powerful delivery player - many commercial structures they prefer not to use it because of its slowness and unreliability.

Even though large transnational companies are represented in this market today, small courier companies, due to their mobility, low prices and more attentive attitude to each client and small orders, are able to compete with them, providing even more expeditious delivery important documents, small parcels and even flowers. Large courier services, as a rule, guarantee next day delivery, while small courier companies, due to their flexibility, usually work within one business day.

This means that all shipped goods will be delivered directly on the day of dispatch. But it is precisely timely delivery and careful processing of parcels that is the main key to success in the courier business.

Where to start a courier business?

There are several key points that you should decide on at the very beginning.

Firstly, small towns and rural areas are not very suitable for this type of business.

Secondly, decide on the specifics of the cargo you are going to work with. It is clear that the delivery of documents and the transportation of, say, medical supplies are somewhat different topics.

Thirdly, decide whether you need a car for courier delivery, and if so, what kind. It is clear that to deliver documents within a small settlement It’s quite possible to get by with a pedestrian courier, but the delivery of large, heavy parcels definitely requires that your courier company have at least one car. In addition to the actual purchase of the vehicle, you will have to resolve the issue of the driver and payment of operating costs and parking. Although there is also an option here, such as concluding a long-term contract with a taxi service or hiring a courier driver with a personal car.

An important point in organizing a courier service is the presence of a dispatcher who must be available to the client around the clock. Despite the fact that the bulk of courier deliveries are carried out during normal daytime operating hours (from 9 am to 6 pm), delivery, at the request of the customer, can be made at any time of the day. This could be the feature that will set your courier company apart from its competitors.

In principle, begin courier business you can do it alone. At first, you will be able to combine the functions of a dispatcher, a courier, and a business owner in one person. But as soon as the business is up and running, you will need help. Typically, the staff of a courier company consists of a dispatcher, couriers, drivers, a secretary and an accountant. If your courier company has a fleet of several cars, you should think about your own mechanic who can service your fleet. And if your courier service delivers heavy, bulky items, then you definitely can’t do without loaders.

As for the couriers themselves, this work can be performed by people with relatively low qualifications or without any at all, the main thing is diligence and accuracy. So there is a clear saving on wages.

Naturally, all staff must be able to competently work with documentation, and drivers and couriers must be able to navigate the city freely (a GPS navigator can greatly help in solving this problem).

Additional costs may arise when insuring the goods being transported and obtaining a certificate for transporting dangerous goods (if you intend to do this).

Courier service. Who are the clients?

In general, there are no special problems with clients. Even in the days of faxes and e-mail, paper documents were still used.

Where to start

Banks, law firms, various organizations, sending documents to clients and partners - these are all your clients. Manufacturing enterprises that require urgent delivery, as well as other types of businesses that require fast courier delivery - and these are your clients. There are courier services that specialize only in the delivery of goods from domestic online stores or in the delivery of corporate invoices. The main thing here is to convince them to use the services of your courier service.

Another idea that we have already talked about is delivering lunches to the office. You can offer your services for delivering lunches to catering establishments. However, according to current legislation, to provide such a service, your couriers or drivers will need to have sanitary records, transport - a sanitary passport, and the dishes themselves - a safety certificate.

You can enter into agreements with regular stores, which deliver goods to your home (this service, by the way, is gaining popularity in many cities today).

02/2012
Sergey Pankratov. How to start your own business.