Annual survey of the couriers and local messengers industry

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Industry profile - 2005 (preliminary data)

An industry facing changing markets

In 2005, the couriers and local messengers industry included 19,625 establishments, an it provided a variety of services from letter delivery by bicycle messenger to high-tech equipment delivery to foreign countries by air. ¹ 

The industry includes very large businesses that are often subsidiaries of multinationals, integrated Canadian trucking companies and small independent contractors. Because of this wide range of activities and business size, the sector is not homogenous. It is not unusual for businesses of the same size in the same segment to have very different management philosophies, especially with regard to the use of employees versus the use of contractors or equipment leasing versus purchasing.

The industry generated operating revenue of about $7.2 billion in 2005, a 6% increase over the revised data of 2004 (see Table 1). By their very nature, couriers and local messenger services provide support or intermediary services (derived demand). Thus, the industry's economic health is largely dependent on general economic conditions. Although certain industries, such as financial institutions, law firms and pharmaceutical distributors, use their services on a daily basis, almost every business uses courier or local messenger services at some time or other.

In the current business context, which is mainly characterized by rapid change fuelled by technological innovation, the industry is facing new challenges and business opportunities at the same time. For example, included among these changes are the gradual acceptance of electronically signed documents, the use of encryption methods for electronic mail and, more generally, the rapid growth of corporate e-commerce and electronic retail shopping in the past decade (for example, see the box "Importance of Electronic Retail Shopping in Canada").

Importance of electronic retail shopping in Canada

Industry operating expenses totalled over $6.6 billion, again an increase of 6% compared to 2004.

In the industry as a whole, salaries, wages and benefits constituted the largest operating expense with 36% of the total, followed by other purchased services with 32% of the total, then costs of energy and supplies with 12% of the total.

When compared to 2004, the largest increases in operating expenses were salaries, wages and benefits, tied with other operating expenses, for an increase of 10%, followed by depreciation expenses and rental and leasing expenses, each with an increase of 7%.

The operating margin, which represents the difference between revenue and expenses, is a good indication of an industry's economic health. The operating margin is $591 million, an increase of 10% over 2004. At the same time, the operating ratio (operating expenses divided by operating revenue) remained unchanged compared to 2004 at 0.92. This means that, overall, the industry's establishments made 8 cents of profit for every dollar spent.

In geographic terms, because it is a service industry, the couriers and local messengers industry fairly accurately reflects business activity in Canada. Thus, Ontario accounted for 45% of the total operating revenue, followed by Quebec with 19% of the total revenue and British Columbia with 13% of the total revenue. Together, the first four provinces (Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta) were responsible for 88% of the total revenue.

One industry, two distinct segments

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) sub-divides this industry into two distinct, but complementary segments: couriers and local messengers. ^6 , 7 

Couriers provide national and international delivery services, using surface or air transportation, or a combination of both. In the context of their activities, courier businesses usually use an established network of terminals extending beyond Canada's borders.

In 2005, there were about 1,408 courier establishments in Canada that generated operating revenue of almost $5.8 billion, an increase of 10% over 2004 (see Table 2). While this segment accounted for only 7% of all the industry's establishments, couriers generated 80% of the total operating revenue. Courier establishments had an average operating margin of about $288,000 per establishment, up 10% compared to 2004. The segment's operating ratio remained unchanged at 0.93.

Local messengers provide messenger and delivery services within a more restricted geographic area, like a city or a metropolitan area. This segment also includes all the independent contractors (or owner operators) working as sub-contractors for courier businesses.

In 2005, there were 18,217 local messenger establishments in Canada that generated operating revenue of $1.4 billion, a decrease of 5% compared to 2004. The segment accounted for 93% of the total number of establishments, but only 20% of the industry's operating revenue. The segment had an average operating margin of about $10,000, up 5% compared to 2004. Note that the segment's modest average operating margin is mainly attributable to the fact that it includes a majority of independent workers. ⁸  Finally, its operating ratio improved slightly compared to the previous year, dropping from 0.88 to 0.87.

Looking at the distribution of expenses by segment, we observe that salaries, wages and benefits were the most significant operating expense item for couriers (40%), followed by other purchased services (31%). This is a difference from local messenger services, where other purchased services were the most significant expense item (40%), followed by cost of energy and supplies (20%). This shows that couriers use more employees, while local messenger services use more independent contractors. In addition, energy expenses (item including fuel expenses) are significantly higher for establishments in the local messengers segment, as there is a large contingent of independent workers who do not pay themselves a salary.

Differences by revenue size

The industry is highly concentrated among a few major companies, especially the couriers segment. ⁹  For purposes of this study, establishments were classified according to revenue size. ¹⁰ 

Large businesses are businesses with annual revenue of $25 million or more. There were 314 establishments in total, generating operating revenue of $5.1 billion. While they only account for 2% of the total number of establishments, large businesses were responsible for 71% of the total operating revenue. On average, this group had an operating margin of $1.3 million per establishment (see Table 3).

Medium-sized businesses are businesses with annual revenue from $1 million to less than $25 million. There were 207 such establishments that generated $787 million in operating revenue. This group accounted for 1% of the total number of establishments and generated 11% of the total operating revenue. On average, this group had an operating margin of $71,000 per establishment.

Finally, small businesses are businesses with annual revenue of less than $1 million. This group included 19,104 establishments and generated operating revenue of $1.3 billion. Although they accounted for 97% of the total number of establishments, small businesses were only responsible for 18% of the total operating revenue. On average, this group, which is mainly composed of independent contractors, had an operating margin of $9,000 per establishment.

Types of services and volume of business

Couriers and local messengers encounter competition from the regular postal service industry and common air and highway carriers, which also deliver small shipments (less-than-truckload or "LTL"). However, their door-to-door delivery services are characterized by a wide variety of expedited and non-expedited services associated with different features, such as a required signature, delivery time guarantee, many security procedures and electronic tracking of shipments.

In the industry as a whole, establishments belonging to large and medium-sized businesses (with revenue of $1 million or more) delivered nearly 654 million packages, generating slightly more than $5.5 billion in delivery revenue in 2005 (see Table 4).

Globally, the services provided are grouped here into two categories, based on the time frame for delivery:

1. 1) Expedited services (or express shipments) include same day and next day or overnight delivery.

1. Same day services are the main activity of specialized local messenger businesses. For this reason, this segment accounted for 96% of the total delivery revenue and 98% of the total number of packages delivered (see Chart 1). This type of service is usually limited to a specific metropolitan area; deliveries are made by bicycle or using light vehicles and are associated with a delivery time guarantee.

1. Next-day/overnight services are mainly performed by couriers. In fact, this segment accounted for 97% of the total delivery revenue and the total number of packages delivered. Deliveries are typically made using highways and air transportation (on chartered flights).

1. 2) Non-expedited services consist of other services -- two days or more.

1. Other services -- two-days or more are almost exclusively provided by couriers, as this segment accounts for 98% of the total delivery revenue and total number of packages delivered. Generally, deliveries are made using highway, air (on regular flights) or, rarely, maritime transportation.

In the industry as a whole, each piece delivered generated an average of $8.48 in delivery revenue. Next-day and overnight services generated the largest average revenue per piece ($10.40), while other services -- two-days or more generated the smallest average revenue per piece ($6.72).

The higher average price per piece observed in the expedited services category is simply a result of the fact that the market price of this type of service is higher. However, it is important to note that other factors also contribute to the average price per piece, such as the type of item being shipped (e.g.: letter, package, etc.) and the weight of the shipment. For example, one might think that it is more common to see heavy packages sent by non-expedited services and letters and small packages sent by expedited services.

Origin and destination of deliveries

Ontario has continued to generate the most activity in the industry, having been at the origin of 47% of the country's delivery revenue (see Table 5). Quebec came next with 17%, followed by the Prairies with 15%. Although there was no major difference at this level between the segments, it is nonetheless interesting to note that British Columbia and the Prairies accounted for a relatively higher portion in the local messengers segment.

Also, shipments to Canadian destinations accounted for 80% of total delivery revenue, while shipments to the United States made up about 16% and to all other countries, 4%. Establishments in the couriers segment generated almost all the revenue from international deliveries.

Fleet and equipment in service

Since time really is money in the industry, couriers and local messengers must rely on dependable and performing vehicles and equipment to provide the means for delivery services.

In the industry as a whole, establishments that are part of large and medium-sized businesses (businesses with revenue of $1 million or more) have almost 28,000 vehicles and various pieces of equipment (see Table 6).

Couriers depend to a large extent on relatively expensive fleets of vehicles and equipment, ranging from simple trucks to cargo aircraft. The most popular vehicles in this segment were minivans and cube vans (63%), followed by trailers (15%) and other equipment (9%). The segment had 20,016 items of equipment in all.

Deliveries by local messengers are most often made by light vehicle. As a matter of fact, the most popular types of equipment in this segment were automobiles (40%) followed by minivans and cube vans (34%) and five-ton trucks. The segment had 7,831 items of equipment in all.

Employment

Establishments associated with large and medium-sized businesses had slightly more than 50,600 employees (see Table 6) in 2005. Of this number, 87% worked in the couriers segment, while 13% worked in the local messengers segment.

These establishments also reported that they used the services of approximately 15,200 independent operators. Most of these (58%) worked in the local messengers segment, compared to 42% in the couriers segment.

Revised result of reference year 2004

Concept, methodology and data quality

Introduction

The 2005 Couriers and Local Messengers Industry Survey results represent fiscal year estimates of financial and operating statistics for the industry.

Classified under the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code 492, this industry is comprised of establishments primarily engaged in providing courier delivery services or messenger and delivery services of small parcels within a single urban area. The type and size of parcels carried, the speed of delivery, and premium services such as guaranteed delivery and track and trace service are the main features of their activities.

Results from this survey provide information on the major categories of revenue and expenses as well as information on the volume of business, origin and destination of shipments and number of vehicles in service.

These results contribute to national and provincial/territorial economic production estimates in Canada. They are also used by private sector businesses for industry performance measurement and market development.

The survey is currently administered as part of the Unified Enterprise Survey Program (UES). The UES program has been integrating, gradually over time, the approximately 200 separate business surveys into a single master survey program. The UES aims at collecting more industry and commodity detail at the provincial level than was previously possible while avoiding overlap between different survey questionnaires. The redesigned business survey questionnaires have a consistent look, structure and content. The combined results produce more coherent and accurate statistics on the economy. The unified approach makes reporting easier for firms operating in different industries because they can provide similar information for each branch of operation. This way they avoid having to respond to questionnaires that differ for each industry in terms of format, wording and even concepts. Each year, Statistics Canada integrates more existing surveys into the UES program.

Data source

Responding to this survey is mandatory. Data are collected directly from survey respondents and extracted from administrative files.

In addition to the mail-out/mail-back questionnaire approach, the survey was also conducted using Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviews (CATI) for data collection, capture, edit and follow-up.

Instrument design

The questionnaire was designed for the first time for the 1997 survey and thoroughly reviewed for the 1999 survey. Its main users and respondents were consulted. Since then, minor changes are made when necessary as part of an ongoing improvement process.

The questionnaire satisfies the statistical requirements of national accounts in financial information, departments of transport for financial information and operation businesses and associations.

Concepts and definitions

Concepts

It is impossible to collect, aggregate and analyze data with a direct link to the infinite range of business structures that exist. This is why Statistics Canada developed a statistical model in which each business, from multinational conglomerates to corner stores, can be evenly represented.

The statistical entity used in Unified Enterprise Surveys (UES) is the establishment, which represents the smallest group of production entities that produce a set of homogeneous goods and/or services and whose activities do not go beyond provincial borders. One of the main advantages of using the establishment entity is that we can collect relatively detailed data at the provincial level.

The establishment is the level at which the accounting data required to measure production are available (principal inputs, revenues, salaries and wages). The establishment, as a statistical unit, is defined as the most homogeneous unit of production for which the business maintains accounting records from which it is possible to assemble all the data elements required to compile the full structure of the gross value of production (total sales or shipments, and inventories), the cost of materials and services, and labour and capital used in production.

The enterprise is associated with a complete set of financial statements. The enterprise, as a statistical unit, is defined as the organizational unit of a business that directs and controls the allocation of resources relating to its domestic operations, and for which consolidated financial and balance sheet accounts are maintained from which international transactions, an international investment position and a consolidated financial position for the unit can be derived. It corresponds to the institutional unit as defined for the System of National Accounts.

The population of interest

The population of interest is all establishments classified to NAICS 492. This industry group is further split into two groups:

1. 4921 – Couriers: This group consists of establishments primarily engaged in providing air, surface or combined courier delivery services. Courier establishments of the Post Office are included.

1. 4922 – Local Messengers and Local Delivery: This industry group comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing messenger and delivery services of small parcels within a single urban area. Establishments engaged in the delivery of letters and documents, such as legal documents, often by bicycle or on foot; and the delivery of small parcels, such as take-out restaurant meals, alcoholic beverages and groceries, on a fee basis, usually by small truck or van, are included.

Definitions

Financial variables

Revenue:

1. Revenue from sales of goods and services (or delivery revenues) are generated from delivery services and from the sales of other goods and services like cargo services and custom brokerage.

1. Other operating revenue includes notably franchise fees and repair and maintenance revenue.

1. Total operating revenue is the sum of all operating revenue.

1. Non-operating revenue comprises income from interest and dividends.

1. Total revenue is the sum of operating and non-operating revenue.

Expenses:

1. Salaries, wages and benefits refer first to salary and wages payments, including notably vacation pay and commissions, for all employees for whom a T4 Supplementary Form is completed. This category also includes the employer portion of employee benefits for items such as Canada Pension Plan contributions or Employment Insurance premiums.

1. Cost of energy and supplies includes both 1) expenses for purchasing fuel for vehicles and airplanes (e.g. gas, diesel fuel, propane, natural gas, fuel for jet airplanes, etc.), 2) other energy costs, such as electricity, natural gas and other energy types, and 3) supply expenses, including office and other operating supplies.

1. Rental and leasing expenses are those costs incurred to rent or lease office space, motor vehicles, computers or any other machinery and equipment.

1. Repair and maintenance expenses are payments made to purchase maintenance and repair services for buildings, motor vehicles or any other machinery and equipment.

1. Property and business taxes include all types of property and business taxes, as well as the different operating permits. Provincial health and education payroll taxes are excluded from this category.

1. Other purchased services includes items such as payments to owner-operators, goods transportation, telephone and other telecommunications costs, insurance premiums, advertising and sales promotion.

1. Depreciation charges are charges related to depreciation and amortization of buildings, vehicles and other machinery and equipment.

1. Other operating expenses includes items such as royalties and franchise fees, bad debts and inventory adjustments. Provincial health and education payroll taxes are included in this category.

1. Total operating expenses is the sum of all operating expenses.

1. Non-operating expenses relates to interest expenses on loans or the interest component of a capital lease.

1. Total expenses is the sum of operating and non-operating expenses.

Net operating revenue:

1. Operating margin is the difference between operating revenue and operating expenses.

1. Operating ratio is the ratio of operating expenses over operating revenue.

In order to specify the expense categories, Table 13 shows the cells of the questionnaire used to derive its exact value.

Other variables:

Pieces are equivalent to envelopes, boxes, parcels or packages. Pieces carried by courier and local messenger companies generally weigh less than 100 kg.

A shipment is the movement of one or more pieces from a pick-up location or origin to a delivery location or destination.

The origin is classified by region in Canada.

The destination is classified as Canada, United States or other countries.

Delivery services can be broken down into three sub-categories:

1. Same-day services refer to shipments delivered the same day they are picked up
2. Next-day/overnight services refer to shipments delivered one day after pick-up
3. Second-day/other services refer to shipments delivered two days or more after pick-up.

The average revenue per piece is the revenue generated from delivery services divided by the number of pieces carried.

Methods

The data were produced as part of Statistics Canada's Unified Enterprise Survey (UES) program.

Sampling

Target population

The target population for this survey is all establishments classified to NAICS 492 and operating for at least one day during the reference year 2005.

Frame

The frame is the list of establishments from which the portion eligible for sampling is determined and the sample is taken. The frame provides basic information about each firm, including address, industry classification and information from administrative data sources. The frame is maintained by Statistics Canada's Business Register Division and is updated using administrative data.

On the Business Register, under NAICS code 492, there were 6,904 establishments of simple and complex enterprises having operated for at least one day during the reference year 2005. Of these, 3,370 establishments were classified under NAICS code 4921 (courier) and 3,534 were under NAICS code 4922 (local delivery).

In addition, a census of unincorporated establishments (T1) from individual income tax declarations provided by the Canada Revenue Agency was used to ensure that independent contractors (self-employed workers) were included since they can easily be left out of the Business Register's coverage due to their small size. In 2005, there were 14,089 unincorporated establishments (T1) that declared income under NAICS code 492 (courier and local messenger).

Sampling plan

Two sources of data were used to derive the estimates:

1. 1) a probability sample survey of courier and local messenger establishments with an annual gross business revenue above survey thresholds;

1. 2) taxation data assembled from samples of T1 slips of unincorporated enterprises and T2 slips of incorporated companies provided by the Canada Revenue Agency to estimate for: 1) a group of establishments with annual gross business revenue above survey thresholds (tax replacement program ¹¹ .

It should be noted that only financial information is obtained from taxation data; e.g. revenue and expenses such as depreciation and salaries, wages and benefits. So-called "characteristic" data, such as equipment or the origin and destination of deliveries, of the units are imputed while considering their own characteristics (province, industry type, revenue, etc.).

In total for the Couriers and Local Messengers Industry, 1,995 establishments on the Business Register had annual revenue above survey thresholds in 2005.

Sampling unit

The sampling unit used in the probability survey is the establishments of one enterprise that operate in the same industry and the same province. The sampling unit can be called a "cluster of establishments".

Sampling rate

Of the total of 1,995 establishments above survey thresholds, 644 establishments were selected in the sample. The overall sampling rate was at 32%.

Data collection

Questionnaires were mailed at the beginning of the year 2005 (January) to establishments selected in the sample. Establishments having received a questionnaire were asked to report information for their most recent 12-month fiscal period. The collection period ended in September 2006.

Data processing

Response rate

The overall response rate, which combines survey data and taxation data, was 83% for the industry. This rate was 90% for couriers (NAICS 4921) and 74% for local messenger services (NAICS 4922).

Imputation

Reported data were examined for completeness and inconsistencies using automated edits coupled with analytical review. Another automated system was used to impute data for refusals, no response and unable to contact, partially with the assistance of taxation data.

This imputation process was also coupled with a manual analytical review. With the use of taxation data, the quality of the data coming out of the imputation process is judged to be very good for the aggregate variables, such as total revenue and total expenses, and to be good for more detailed variables (see Table 14).

Allocation

In a number of cases, respondents reported results that combined sampling units from more than one province, which created the need for data allocation by province. Auxiliary information, stemming mainly from the T4 Supplementary Form, was used to allocate the data reported on the combined report among the various provinces where the enterprise was in operation. This source of information used for allocation purposes provides an adequate distribution of revenue and expenses by province and territory.

Estimation

The sampling weights derived from the sample survey design were modified and improved using updated information. This was possible because, during the passage of time since the sample was selected, the Business Register was updated further with more complete information. The final set of weights reflects as closely as possible the changing characteristics of the population in this industry. The final estimates were derived by combining the survey estimates and the taxation data estimates.

Data quality

All surveys are subject to sampling and non-sampling errors. Statistics Canada uses a variety of methods to minimize all types of errors. Efforts were taken to minimize the non-sampling errors of omission, duplication, reporting and processing.

Quality evaluation

Prior to dissemination, combined survey results are analyzed for comparability; in general, this includes a detailed review of individual responses (especially for the largest companies), general economic conditions, historic trends, and comparisons with other data sources.

Coefficients of variation

Coefficients of variation (CV) of the final estimates were computed. The quality of the estimates is classified as follows:

Based on these ratings and as depicted in Table 15 above, total revenue estimates for the overall industry (NAICS 492) are judged to be excellent at the national, provincial and territorial levels for 2005. For Couriers (NAICS 4921) the estimates were judged to be excellent at all levels. For Local Messengers (NAICS 4922), the quality of the estimates was judged to be very good at the national level and from excellent to acceptable at the provincial and territorial levels.

Overall, the 2005 preliminary estimates are viewed as providing an accurate and reliable portrait of the Couriers and Local Messengers industry in Canada.

Disclosure control

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any data which would divulge information obtained under the Statistics Act that relates to any identifiable person, business or organization without the prior knowledge or the consent in writing of that person, business or organization. Various confidentiality rules are applied to all data that are released or published to prevent the publication or disclosure of any information deemed confidential. If necessary, data are suppressed to prevent direct or residual disclosure of identifiable data.

Data release

Data for some of the tables can also be found in CANSIM, tables 402-0001 to 402-0003.

Statistical updates and corrections

Conceptual and methodological changes were made at the beginning of the reference year 2004 to improve the quality of the estimates:

1. Corrections were made following our process to validate data with key survey respondents (large businesses) and had a significant effect on the revenues and expenses of the Courier segment.
2. The definitions of the industry segments were updated. As a result, the establishments belonging to incorporated enterprises are now classified under the Courier segment, while all owner-operator (or unincorporated enterprise) establishments are found under Local Messenger Services.
3. Coverage of the unincorporated survey units (T1) with revenues below survey thresholds was perfected following the introduction of a new methodology developed to optimize use of taxation data. One of its advantages is that it provides better coverage of small establishments.
4. A revision of the mapping process for the survey and taxation variables were also made, which affected the relative importance of some expense categories to a certain extent.

Although all these changes contribute to the improvement of the overall survey quality and are part of the ongoing process aimed at improving our data, we are aware of their impact on historical continuity and we regret any inconvenience this may cause our users.