Same-Day Delivery Startup Deliv Snags Amazon Logistics Manager

Deliv, a startup that employs a network of part-time drivers to deliver packages from retailer stores to customer doors on the same day they are purchased, has hired Amazon logistics manager Jeff Helms as its head of delivery operations.

Helms will report to Deliv CEO Daphne Carmeli.

At Amazon, Helms oversaw delivery operations in Southern California for Amazon’s “last mile” initiative. The new program involves Amazon handling the same-day and next-day delivery of Amazon Fresh groceries and other Amazon products instead of relying on traditional delivery services such as UPS to get packages to customer doors.

So why leave Amazon during the creation of what could be a giant new logistics business at the country’s biggest online retailer?

“How many senior operations managers, general managers and directors are there in Amazon and Amazon operations? There are a lot,” Helms said. “How many directors of delivery operations are there at Deliv? There’s one. It’s a classic fish/pond scenario.”

He also said that it’s a perfect time to join a delivery company that is positioning itself as an ally to retailers in their battle against Amazon as more and more shoppers expect shorter and shorter delivery times. Deliv isn’t a consumer-facing brand, instead opting to be a white-label logistics partner to the retail companies. That means retailers and malls that work with Deliv are able to maintain a direct relationship with their shoppers.

Last month IBM announced that it would help its retail customers easily integrate with Deliv to deliver products ordered by customers over the phone, in stores and on e-commerce websites. Deliv’s CEO previously said her company currently handles same-day deliveries for orders placed over the phone and in stores for 115 retailers in select regions. The company is working on deals with more than a dozen big retailers to integrate Deliv’s same-day delivery option into their e-commerce shops by year’s end, she said last month.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

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