CarParts.com took its A-Premium aftermarket parts partnership from a $45 million run rate in Q1 2024 to $50 million by Q2, according to the company's earnings commentary reported by Seeking Alpha. The gain turned on a single structural decision: CarParts assumed last-mile delivery for A-Premium inventory, targeting 300,000 packages through its own final-mile network.

The mechanic is straightforward. CarParts operates distribution centers that already handle its own e-commerce fulfillment. By folding A-Premium SKU into those facilities and controlling delivery to the customer's door, the company eliminated third-party carrier margin on the final leg and shortened the time from order to install. A-Premium gained faster replenishment visibility without building its own last-mile infrastructure. CarParts captured incremental revenue on every package and tightened the loop between stock movement and demand signal.

This works because automotive aftermarket parts carry high per-unit shipping cost relative to order value, and customers value speed over carrier brand. A brake rotor or suspension kit ordered Tuesday needs to arrive Wednesday or the repair stalls. Controlling last-mile means controlling the promise, and the data. Every scan and every delivery window feeds directly into inventory positioning. The partnership scales because CarParts can add A-Premium volume to existing route density without building new capacity.

A small physical-product brand can run the same structure at modest scale. Identify a complementary brand whose product ships to the same customer type, in the same size class, on a similar speed expectation. Propose a trial: you fulfill their orders through your existing three-PL or regional carrier contract, batching their SKU with yours on the same last-mile routes. Charge a per-package fee that splits the carrier savings. Set a 90-day pilot with a 500-package minimum so both sides see route density gains and margin improvement in real numbers. Use a shared dashboard—Shopify, ShipStation, or a simple Google Sheet—so the partner watches their delivery speed improve and you watch incremental revenue compound. After the pilot, renegotiate the fee based on documented cost-per-package and speed-to-door improvement. Lock the partnership with a 12-month contract that scales the package target quarterly. The partner gets faster delivery and lower carrier cost. You get incremental revenue on infrastructure you already paid for, and the data from their orders improves your own inventory positioning.

The broader pattern: last-mile control is the new wholesale margin. Brands that own the final delivery step own the customer promise and the replenishment signal, and they capture the logistics margin that used to leak to carriers.