B2B Delivery: What It Is and How to Set It Up for Your Business
B2B delivery means delivering to other businesses: stores, cafés, restaurants, and offices. How it differs from home delivery and how to set up reliable routes.
B2B delivery is delivery from one business to another: a bakery supplying cafés, a food brand restocking grocery stores, a wholesaler serving restaurants, or a caterer feeding an office. It differs from home delivery in who receives the order, when they can, and what paperwork has to change hands.
This guide covers how B2B delivery works, what business receivers expect, and how to set up routes that arrive on time.
Key takeaways
- Business customers receive during set hours, often early in the morning, and some only at a back door or loading dock.
- Standing orders on fixed days are the norm, which makes B2B delivery a good fit for recurring routes.
- Paperwork matters: an invoice or packing slip with the delivery, and proof it arrived.
- Some buildings and accounts ask for a certificate of insurance before a courier can deliver.
- Missing a receiving window can mean a lost sale, so plan routes around the strictest window, not the shortest drive.
What is B2B delivery?
B2B (business-to-business) delivery moves goods from a supplier to a business customer that will resell them, use them, or serve them. B2C (business-to-consumer) delivery goes to a person at home.
Examples:
- A bakery’s 6 a.m. run to five cafés
- A coffee roaster delivering cases to offices and restaurants
- A food brand restocking independent grocery stores
- A florist supplying arrangements to hotels every Monday
- A caterer delivering a boxed lunch order to a company
How is B2B delivery different from home delivery?
| B2B delivery | Home delivery (B2C) | |
|---|---|---|
| Receiving hours | Set windows, often early morning or before opening | Whenever someone is home, or left at the door |
| Where it goes | Back door, loading dock, receiving desk, or a named contact | Front door |
| Order pattern | Standing orders on fixed days | One-off orders |
| Order size | Cases, trays, cartons | One bag or box |
| Paperwork | Invoice or packing slip, a signature or photo, sometimes a PO number | A confirmation email |
| Who checks it | A receiver who counts against the invoice | The customer |
| Building rules | Freight elevators, dock schedules, insurance certificates | Rarely |
What do business customers expect?
Delivery inside the receiving window
Many businesses receive only at certain times: a café before it opens, a grocery store’s receiving hours, a restaurant before lunch prep. Ask each account for its window and its receiving contact, and write both on the stop.
The right door and the right person
A delivery left at the front of a restaurant during service is a problem. Record the entrance for each stop (back door, dock, side entrance), any door code, and who signs. Big buildings may want deliveries through a loading dock or freight elevator at set times.
An accurate count
Business receivers usually check the delivery against the invoice. A packing error can cost as much as a late delivery: a short case means a credit, a second trip, or both. Pack against the order, label cases by account, and put the invoice or packing slip with the delivery.
Proof that it arrived
A photo at drop-off, with a timestamp and location, settles most “we never got it” questions. Some accounts also want a signature or the receiver’s name.
Insurance paperwork
Some commercial buildings and larger accounts ask vendors and their couriers for a certificate of insurance before they’ll accept deliveries. Ask about it when you open a new account, not on the first delivery morning.
How do you set up B2B delivery?
- List your accounts with address, receiving window, entrance, contact, and standing order days.
- Group accounts by delivery day. Put accounts that are near each other and have similar windows on the same day.
- Set the route around the tightest windows. If a café needs its order by 6:30 a.m. and an office takes deliveries until 11 a.m., the café goes first even if the office is closer. Our guide to planning a multi-stop delivery route covers sequencing.
- Make standing routes recurring so the courier is booked every week. See scheduled versus on-demand delivery for when each fits.
- Agree on proof. Decide whether each account needs a photo, a signature, or both.
- Plan for rush orders. Keep an on-demand option for a mid-week restock instead of waiting for the next route.
Should you run your own B2B deliveries or use a courier?
It depends on how full your routes are. A route that fills a driver’s day five days a week can justify your own van and driver. A few accounts, or volume that swings by season, usually costs less per delivery with a courier. Our guide to in-house delivery versus a courier service has a worked cost model: one driver and one cargo van come to about $76,000 a year before fuel.
If you’re getting product onto store shelves for the first time, our guide to direct store delivery covers what stores expect at the back door.
We run scheduled, recurring, and same-day B2B routes in 100 US metro areas, in vehicles from SUVs to cargo vans, including a courier service in Kansas City and Pittsburgh. Every stop has live tracking and a photo at drop-off. See our wholesale delivery service and food and beverage delivery, or price a route in the delivery cost calculator.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does B2B delivery mean?
Delivery from one business to another, such as a supplier delivering to a store, café, restaurant, or office.
What is the difference between B2B and B2C delivery?
B2B delivery goes to businesses, usually on standing orders, during set receiving hours, with an invoice and proof of delivery. B2C delivery goes to consumers at home, usually as one-off orders.
What time do businesses accept deliveries?
It varies by account. Cafés and bakeries often want early-morning delivery before they open. Ask each account for its receiving window and contact.
Do I need proof of delivery for B2B orders?
It’s strongly recommended. A timestamped photo at drop-off, and a signature where an account asks for one, settles disputes about missing or short deliveries.
Can a courier handle recurring B2B deliveries?
Yes. Standing orders fit recurring scheduled routes, with the same pickup time and stops each week.
The Bottom Line
B2B delivery is about the receiver’s schedule, not yours. Record each account’s window, entrance, and contact; pack against the invoice; plan routes around the tightest windows; and keep proof of every drop. Standing orders make B2B delivery predictable, which is exactly what scheduled, recurring routes are built for. To price yours, use the delivery cost calculator.
