Buy a van or pay a carrier (Part 1)

Whatever size of business and business transportation needs there is always the question of whether it is better to provide this service in-house or to pay a carrier of some kind to transport business goods.
There are several considerations, volume of goods to be transported, frequency of deliveries, and the nature of the goods to be transported.
•    Volume of goods & frequency of deliveries: It’s pretty obvious that if you are only sending one or two small parcels a day then you probably don’t even need a car, and you could cycle down to the post office with them. Also true that it’s no good having a van depreciating sat most of the time outside your works office, and having only a half load or less most of the time. If you are just starting up and are really not sure of how the volume of goods is going to change over time it will be better to start off with a carrier suitable for the size of your predicted good delivery needs. This may be a courier service, haulage or shipping company, or a company that will manage your whole logistics services. You will need to do some research as to the cost for the volume you may be having.
•    Type of goods : If your goods are fresh produce or perishable goods of some kind then you will need to be in charge of delivery to your customers unless you have a way to package to extend shelf life. If your goods are very valuable and perhaps subject to breakage then you will want to ensure safe transport door to door which will probably best achieved by your own staff and company vehicle. It may be that your goods need checking or setting up on delivery and thus self-delivery may be the first option. Though you could have a delivery company deliver the goods and have the setter/checker go separately in a company car which would be cost effective if this kind of delivery is rare.