FedEx

FedEx Corporation—originally the Federal Express Corporation—is an American multinational holding company that handles transportation, e-commerce, and business services. Its headquarters are in Memphis, Tennessee. The name “FedEx” is a shortened form of its original air division, Federal Express, which used that name from 1973 to 1994. The company is most recognized for its delivery services, which include FedEx Express, FedEx Ground, FedEx Office, FedEx Supply Chain, FedEx Freight, and other subsidiaries. Many of these expansions were strategic moves to compete with its main rival, UPS. The company’s air shipping operations are centered at its main hub at Memphis International Airport, making that airport a key location for global logistics.

Frederick W. Smith, a Yale graduate, founded the company in 1971 in Little Rock, Arkansas, as Federal Express Corporation. He had outlined the concept in a Yale term paper, proposing a system designed for urgent deliveries. His professor was unimpressed, but Smith moved ahead. Formal operations began in 1973 after he relocated to Memphis, choosing Memphis International Airport because it was near the country’s mean population center and had calm weather. The company grew quickly, reaching $1 billion in revenue by 1983—a rare feat for a startup that had not used mergers or acquisitions in its first decade. It expanded into Europe and Asia in 1984. In 1988, it bought a major competitor, Flying Tiger Line, creating the world’s largest full-service cargo airline. In 1994, the company officially shortened its name to FedEx for marketing purposes, adopting a nickname already in common use.

On October 2, 1997, FedEx reorganized as a holding company called FDX Corporation, based in Delaware. This new entity began operations in January 1998 after Federal Express acquired Caliber System Inc. The purchase allowed FedEx to offer services beyond express shipping. Caliber’s subsidiaries included RPS (a small-package ground service), Roberts Express (expedited shipping), Viking Freight (a regional less-than-truckload carrier in the western U.S.), Caribbean Transportation Services (airfreight forwarding between the U.S. and the Caribbean), and Caliber Logistics and Caliber Technology (logistics and technology services). FDX Corporation was created to oversee all these operations along with the original air division, Federal Express. In January 2000, FDX Corporation changed its name to FedEx Corporation and rebranded all subsidiaries: Federal Express became FedEx Express, RPS became FedEx Ground, Roberts Express became FedEx Custom Critical, and Caliber Logistics and Caliber Technology were combined into FedEx Global Logistics. A new subsidiary, FedEx Corporate Services, was formed to centralize sales, marketing, and customer service. In February 2000, FedEx bought Tower Group International, an international logistics company, and WorldTariff, a customs duty and tax information firm; these were rebranded as FedEx Trade Networks.

In February 2004, FedEx Corp. bought privately held Kinko’s, Inc., rebranding it FedEx Kinko’s to expand retail access. After the acquisition, all FedEx Kinko’s locations offered only FedEx shipping. In June 2008, the company dropped the Kinko’s name, renaming the centers FedEx Office. In September 2004, FedEx bought Parcel Direct, a parcel consolidator, rebranding it FedEx SmartPost. In April 2015, FedEx acquired rival TNT Express for €4.4 billion ($4.8 billion) to expand in Europe. In February 2016, FedEx launched FedEx Cares, a global giving platform, committing $200 million to strengthen over 200 communities by 2020. In March 2018, it bought P2P Mailing Limited, a last-mile delivery service, for £92 million. In June 2019, FedEx declined to renew its $850 million contract with Amazon for U.S. domestic express delivery; Amazon had accounted for 1.3% of 2018 revenues. In August 2019, FedEx also ended ground deliveries for Amazon. In December 2020, FedEx acquired ShopRunner, an e-commerce platform. On March 29, 2022, founder Frederick W. Smith announced he would retire as CEO and become executive chairman effective June 1, 2022; Raj Subramaniam, then president and COO, succeeded him. In April 2023, FedEx announced plans to consolidate its operating companies into a single organization. In June 2024, FedEx Ground and FedEx Services were merged into Federal Express, creating a unified air-ground delivery network as part of the Network 2.0 restructuring. In December 2024, FedEx announced plans to separate FedEx Freight into an independent publicly traded company. In June 2026, the spin-off was completed, and FedEx Freight common stock began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol FDXF.