Dell Inc. said on Friday that it will stop offering free home delivery to buyers of its least expensive computers and PC systems in an effort to cut its operating costs.
Starting October 10, buyers of those items will have 10 days to pick them up at their nearest U.S. Post Office, or they can pay extra for home delivery.
Dell will become the first large corporate participant in the USPS’ recently unveiled “Hold for Pickup” program. That plan, being touted by the USPS as an efficient, low-cost shipping option, lets a shipper mark a package as “hold for pickup”; once it reaches the local post office, the recipient is notified that it has arrived and during what hours it can be picked up. Parcels that are not retrieved in 10 days are then shipped back to the sender.
“We are always looking for ways to pass savings on to our customers,” Jennifer Davis, spokesperson for Dell’s U.S. consumer division, was quoted as saying in a press report. She added that the new shipping option will be convenient for buyers who cannot be home to receive a delivery and will avoid packages being left in hallways.
With almost 30% of the domestic market in consumer computer sales, Dell retails only over the Web and has traditionally enticed buyers by making purchase decisions both easy-- with extensive customer care-- and inexpensive with free shipping.
But after missing sales and revenue targets for second-quarter 2005, the company has embarked on a program to cut costs and increase margins. Paring back on free delivery will take aim at operating costs. On the margin side, Dell last Wednesday unveiled plans for a high-performance, big-ticket computer line, the XPS, with starting price points two to three times those of its other computer lines.
