Levolor Window Fashions Canada –
A 10% Reduction of Annual Freight Expenditure

Levolor Window Fashions has been in business since 1914 and is a leader in custom window coverings, originally known for their 1-inch mini-blinds. Levolor has since expanded their product offering to decorative window drapery that is distributed nationally through home centers and other retailers. Today they are a division of The Newell-Rubbermaid Group.

In 2000, Levolor began using DTA and both companies worked together to establish accounting rules and procedures. These Standard Operating Procedures (SOP’s) involved the allocation of Levolor’s general ledger (GL) coding to each shipment and established the type of data Levolor required. The detailed weekly and monthly reports that are produced are invaluable for Levolor management when analyzing and budgeting for their $1 million plus transportation expense.

An opportunity for cost savings arose in October 2008, when the DTA auditor discovered that Yellow Transportation was suddenly billing at general tariff rates for transferred shipments on moves from Salt Lake City, UT to Etobicoke, ON for all weight levels. The auditor contacted Yellow Transportation to discuss discounts and during the call the auditor learned that Levolor in the United States had a discount program in place with, but it did not apply on outbound collect shipments. The auditor immediately requested that Levolor Canada be included on the Yellow discount contract and Yellow agreed. The charges were revised with a significant discount and the invoices were adjusted and paid accordingly. This reactive effort made by DTA saved Levolor $21,308 on 22 shipments within a two month period. The projected annual savings amounted to $127,852.

DTA ensures that the carriers are not over billing or asking for payment twice. We also act diligently to highlight opportunities for future cost savings that will benefit all clients. In addition, DTA provides in-depth bench marking rate comparisons, carrier tendering and overall cost reviews. We take pride in our continual quest to save our clients money, as this Levolor example shows.