Patent ID: 8744977

Claim:
A method for virtual inventory management, said method comprising the steps of: (1) receiving from a shipper a shipment request for a carrier to ship packages, said shipment request identifying at least a destination country where said packages need to be shipped; (2) upon an approval of said shipment request by said carrier, receiving said packages from said shipper at a first operation station of said carrier; (3) receiving and processing shipping data associated with said packages in a global shipment system operated by said carrier, said global shipment system comprising one or more processors connected to one or more respective memories, said processors configured to generate data representative of a consolidated shipment, said consolidated shipment comprising said packages from said shipper with one or more shipments to be shipped to said destination country; (4) sending a notification to said shipper when said consolidated shipment comprising said packages is received at a second operation station of said carrier in said destination country; and (5) upon said notification, receiving from said shipper specific consignee locations in said destination country, said processors configured to separate said consolidated shipment into one or more child shipments, each of said one or more child shipments associated with one of said consignee locations and comprising one or more of said packages so that said each of said one or more child shipments can be dispatched and delivered by said carrier to respective consignee locations.