Document Type
Thesis
First Faculty Advisor
Michael Gravier
Second Faculty Advisor
Stephanie Carter
Keywords
logistics; sustainability; consumers
Publisher
Bryant University
Rights Management
CC - BY - NC - ND; CC - BY; CC - BY - SA; CC - BY - ND; CC - BY - NC - SA; CC - BY - NC
Abstract
The very last step in the supply chain is the final delivery of the good to the customer or consumer. However, the complexity of the geographic dispersion of customers and lack of logistical efficiency in this stage makes it the most expensive and the most polluting to the environment. Furthered by the rise in e-commerce and the rapid changing of our global climate, the future of last-mile delivery rests in the perceptions and behaviors of consumers. This paper aims to identify the current thoughts and feelings of consumers to determine the feasibility of future sustainable last-mile delivery while seeking to provide a recommendation for companies to create a more competitive supply chain. The methodology used in reaching an outcome includes a stated preference survey sent out to consumers evaluating their preferred delivery methods based on questions containing one sustainable method and one unsustainable method. The results of this survey are analyzed using the McNemar non-parametric test. It is concluded that consumers do not naturally choose the more sustainable options without additional information readily available, and they struggle to sacrifice cost for sustainability and ethics.
