Shipping giant Fedex specifically targets small businesses to purchase its offerings including shipping, office support services, shipping management technology through marketing campaigns, discounts, incentives and other programs. Obviously included in these efforts are the more than 3 million businesses owned and operated by military veterans. Ironically, Fred Smith, FedEx founder and CEO, served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps as a platoon leader. So, it seems a perfect fit for FedEx to be one of the most vetrepreneur-friendly firms in the country, right?

Wrong.

According to the FedEx Office supplier diversity website, only small businesses confirmed by a “recognized agency” as women- or minority-owned are eligible to submit an application for the company’s supplier diversity program. The site continues to describe how FedEx looks for “quality products and services that are delivered on time and at competitive prices.”

Does this mean that veteran-owned businesses can’t deliver competitively priced quality service in a timely fashion? It would seem that if any company would recognize the value of a vetrepreneur it would be the firm with one of the country’s most successful vetrepreneurs at the helm. FedEx refused repeated attempts to provide comment for this article and address this issue.

Ironically, FedEx’s chief competitor, UPS, happens to not only be a NaVOBA corporate member, it has ranked among the Top 10 Best Corporations for Veteran-Owned Businesses for the past three years. So, when it comes to your small business shipping needs, perhaps you should go with brown.

To learn more about FedEx Diverse Supplier Development visit:

http://fedex.com/us/office/customersupport/diversity.html  

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