Last-mile Delivery of Electronic Retailers: Systematic Literature Review and Research Directions

Abstract

Volume and share of electronic retail (e-tail) business are growing rapidly and this rapid growth was accelerated further due to COVID-19. More e-tailing businesses have increased last-mile delivery operations. To handle this growth, last-mile operators are facing huge challenges due to the complexity of last-mile operations. The last-mile is not only challenging but also critical to e-tailers, customers, society, and the environment. Hence a study of the current body of knowledge on the last-mile of business-to-customer (B2C) e-tailer has become necessary for e-tailers now. This study attempts to review the research done on this important subject and find possible research opportunities that could benefit e-tailers appreciably. The study deciphers critical factors and solutions related to the last-mile. A research framework is also proposed. Practitioners may pay more attention to the implementation and adoption of alternate last-mile delivery arrangements. The challenges and effects of the last-mile offer some directions to researchers.