# CarParts.com scaled A-Premium from $45M to $50M run rate in 90 days using last-mile logistics *The auto-parts retailer turned distribution into a revenue stream by shipping for other brands.* By **Jenny Huang Goodman MPA MSc MHSA, Principal** — The Stash Edge, Hako Shikin LLC. Published 2026-08-20. Canonical: https://www.pops4.com/stash/articles/carpartscom-2026-08-20t12-1 Subject: CarParts.com Tags: last-mile logistics, distribution partnership, fulfillment arbitrage, shared infrastructure, capacity monetization --- CarParts.com moved its A-Premium partnership from a **$45 million** run rate in Q1 2026 to approaching **$50 million** in Q2, according to the company's investor update on Seeking Alpha. The mechanism: CarParts.com used its existing warehouse footprint and last-mile delivery network to fulfill orders for A-Premium, a third-party auto-parts brand, turning underutilized logistics capacity into a standalone revenue line. The company reported a **300,000-package last-mile delivery goal** for 2026, positioning the distribution play as a path to free cash flow positive status. The A-Premium partnership grew **$5 million in annualized run rate in one quarter**, accelerating quarter over quarter without requiring new infrastructure. CarParts.com already owned the warehouses, trucks, and delivery routes for its own catalog. A-Premium paid to use them. This works because physical-product companies carry fixed logistics costs whether they ship 10,000 units or 50,000 units. Warehouse rent, fleet leases, and driver hours exist as overhead. Every incremental package shipped for a partner brand absorbs that fixed cost without adding proportional expense. CarParts.com turned excess capacity into margin by letting A-Premium ride the same last-mile network it built for its own SKUs. The move also compressed A-Premium's delivery time. A-Premium gained access to regional distribution nodes without building them, cutting transit windows and improving conversion at checkout. CarParts.com earned revenue on every package and filled delivery routes that would have run partially empty. Both parties extracted value from the same infrastructure. A small physical-product brand can run the same play on a modest scale. If you ship **50+ units per week** and own your fulfillment, you have excess capacity. Find a complementary brand—different product, same customer—and offer to ship their orders from your warehouse for a per-package fee. Example: a coffee brand and a mug brand. The coffee company already pays for warehouse space and daily UPS pickups. The mug brand pays **$4 per shipment** to use that capacity. The coffee brand turns fixed overhead into variable income. The mug brand skips the cost of a second fulfillment contract. Start with one partner. Set a per-package rate that covers your incremental pick-pack cost plus **20% margin**. Run a 30-day test with **100 packages**. Track your labor hours and shipping accuracy. If the partner's orders fit cleanly into your existing workflow—same carrier, similar package size, no special handling—scale to **500 packages per month**. At **$4 per package**, that adds **$2,000 monthly revenue** without new rent or staff. The risk is operational complexity. A second brand's inventory means separate SKU tracking, dual quality control, and split reporting. Solve this by limiting the partnership to brands with fewer than **10 SKUs** and similar shipping profiles. Use the same box sizes, the same carrier, the same delivery windows. If the partner's orders disrupt your own fulfillment speed, the margin disappears. CarParts.com proved the model at **$50 million annualized**. A one-person brand proves it at **$24,000 annualized**—**500 packages per month** at **$4 each**. The principle scales: turn fixed logistics cost into shared infrastructure, and charge for the ride. ## The takeaway If you ship 50+ units weekly, sell excess warehouse and delivery capacity to a complementary brand at cost-plus-20%. --- ## Publisher **Hako Shikin LLC** — Virginia Beach, Virginia. Founded 1997. ASI 217876 · DUNS 18-204-6339. Principal and author: **Jenny Huang Goodman MPA MSc MHSA**. - Author: https://www.huanggoodman.com/about - LLM context: https://www.pops4.com/stash/llms.txt - MCP endpoint, for AI agents: https://mcp.pops4.com/mcp - Client dashboard: https://dashboard.pops4.com/ - Catalogue: 70,000+ products, 200+ brands