Amazon.com Teams with FedEx and the USPS to Deliver Latest Harry Potter

Posted on April 18, 2003

Amazon.com has teamed with FedEx and the U.S. Postal Service to deliver the next book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. The book will be delivered on Saturday, June 21 -- the first day the book is available to the public. Amazon.com is calling it the largest distribution event of any single item in ecommerce history. Amazon.com will offer delivery of the book via FedEx delivery services or the U.S. Postal Service on Saturday, June 21, for the same price as Standard shipping.

"We know kids of all ages are eager to start reading about Harry's next adventure, and we're thrilled to be working with FedEx and the U.S. Postal Service to offer customers the easiest way to get their hands on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on the day it is released," said Steve Kessel, vice president, North American media products. "Now, not only will customers receive a 40 percent discount when they order the book on Amazon.com, but they can also have it delivered to their doors the first day it's available."

"FedEx will use its portfolio of services to tailor a solution for Amazon.com as we did in 2000 when we delivered 250,000 Harry Potter books to homes on a Saturday, the same day books were first available in stores," said T. Michael Glenn, FedEx executive vice president, marketing and corporate communications. "FedEx appreciates the opportunity to work with Amazon.com and once again be part of ecommerce history with this delivery."

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix became Amazon.com's No. 1 bestselling book within two hours of becoming available for pre-order on January 15, 2003, and has remained atop the bestseller list since. Harry Potter has also been a bestseller in Amazon.com's DVD store. Amazon.com is not the only online retailer with Harry Potter related deals -- most online book retailers feature the upcoming novel and offer discounts.