Blue Yonder to Expand Supply Chain Solutions With Doddle Acquisition

Blue Yonder, a supply chain solutions provider, has signed an agreement to acquire Doddle, a first- and last-mile technology business.

The deal will allow Blue Yonder to expand its suite of supply chain management and commerce offerings, incorporating final mile, returns management and reverse logistics solutions, the company said in a Thursday (Oct. 12) press release.

“The proliferation of eCommerce — and, therefore, returns — has placed increased pressure on carriers, muddied the waters of inventory management and created frustrations for shoppers,” Blue Yonder CEO Duncan Angove said in the release. “Doddle’s capabilities unlock a differentiated, superior customer experience and will help us to further our mission to transform the supply chain.”

With Doddle’s capabilities, Blue Yonder aims to provide retailers and logistics service providers with a simplified experience for their customers, as well as enhanced growth potential to strengthen their businesses and build more sustainable supply chains, according to the release.

Doddle’s self-service return kiosks and pick-up, drop-off (PUDO) networks offer efficient solutions to the challenges of returns management faced by retail and logistics businesses, the release said. By integrating Doddle’s offerings with Blue Yonder’s supply chain planning, orchestration and execution solutions, the companies aim to address the growing challenges in the first and last mile of eCommerce.

Consumers returned over $816 billion worth of products in 2022, with estimates suggesting that only about 50% of returned products make it back on store shelves, the release said, citing data from the National Retail Federation. With their robust and optimized delivery and returns offerings, Blue Yonder and Doddle aim to provide customers with a seamless way to reduce costs and inventory waste.

Blue Yonder’s comprehensive suite of solutions, from planning and execution to fulfillment and returns, can help retailers, logistics service providers and postal carriers build more sustainable and profitable end-to-end supply chains, per the release.

The acquisition agreement between Blue Yonder and Doddle was signed on Oct. 11, and the transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter, according to the press release.

In an earlier expansion of its capabilities, Blue Yonder launched three new microservices in March, including solutions that help retailers and manufacturers better forecast inventory, orders and labor. These solutions encompass both online and in-store shopping and are delivered via the digital supply chain platform’s Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) offering.