What Makes Building A Logistics Business Challenging?

Are you thinking of putting together your own delivery company? It’s the kind of business that makes good money, whether you’re servicing the local area, a more regional one, or you have your sights set on an international scale. We’re more connected than ever, and that means there are more customers than ever!

However, developing a logistics company throws up a lot of unique challenges as well. While it may be fairly simple and straightforward to get up and running, trying to build beyond this point can have a lot of complications. 

After all, in the modern era the scale of delivery needs worldwide has left many would-be companies on the backfoot. As we said above, we’re more connected than ever, and that means there are more customers than ever – but it also means there’s more competition and expectation than ever as well. 

As such, if you don’t want to close your doors before your first year is even up, you’ll need to be aware of the challenges below and what they could mean for your logistic business’ plans. 

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The Cost of Transportation

This is the number one issue facing any and all logistics businesses right now. How are you supposed to expand your business when it’s already expensive enough to run the small fleet you have? 

Taking out a loan or arranging some alternative financing is not something you can just charge into. It’s not a decision to take lightly; you’re going to need to measure it up against your future forecasting and what you’re likely to make in profit over the repayment term. 

Plus, the average cost of fuel in the US is pretty high. Will you be able to afford to fuel up twice the amount of vehicles at a price point like this? 

Keeping the Delivery Chain Moving

One element that could have a negative impact on this is the downtime of any road vehicles while they’re on a job. If a delivery truck carrying packages for 10 or more customers needs to stop to change a tire, or is involved in an accident, your entire delivery chain is going to go down with it. 

You need to have foresight over this; make sure you’re aware of nearby truck repair shops within the area you’re servicing, invest in responsive breakdown cover, and take steps to keep the customer in the loop no matter what’s going on. 

For example, if it’s part of your policy that the driver needs to radio into you first in regards to the situation, you can then set your customer service staff on the case. 

This kind of communication will be important for another issue that slows down your delivery chain: a lack of real time coordination. If drivers have to go back and forth over a region, despite needing to make multiple deliveries in the same area, they’re going to waste time and fuel, and therefore money. 

Planning out a delivery roadmap in advance of each job is essential, and there needs to be someone on the other end of the radio keeping your driver updated and on task wherever they are. 

Meeting Customer Expectations

Delivery expectations in 2025 often demand a fast turnaround, before anything else. If you can’t get something to someone’s day within 48 to 72 hours, many people will be left unhappy. That could lead to floods of complaints entering your inbox, and a customer service desk overwhelmed by questions over where their shipment is and when they can expect it. 

One way to get the lead on this? Make sure you’re investing in your communication with your customers. Let them know the exact delivery time, if you’re able to provide it. If not, give them a clearly defined window in which their package is going to arrive. And if something is going to disrupt delivery, make sure they know when to expect their parcel. 

Providing this insight into what they can expect will help you to meet their expectations; after all, you’re the one responsible for setting them in the first place! 

Want to Build Your Logistics Business? 

Then get ready for some challenges along the way. The cost of transport, to begin with, and then the rising demand you have to keep up with from the moment you start trading. 

You’ll also need to think about how to keep your delivery chain moving from start to finish; there should never be a downtime incident you don’t know how to deal with!