Christmas gifts at a shipping center.Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty
But now in recent days, with the approval of theCOVID-19 vaccination, mail carriers have also been focused on distributing the vaccine nationwide, according to the outlet.
“The carriers are well-equipped to handle the needs of both the vaccine distribution and e-commerce shipping — not to mention the fact that both rely on very different parts of the UPS and FedEx infrastructure,” Laura Behrens Wu, the CEO and co-founder of Shippo, a shipping software provider for e-commerce businesses, told CNBC.
“But if 2020 taught us anything, it’s that merchants and consumers should prepare themselves for the unexpected,” Wu added. “While a service disruption is unlikely, it’s still a smart idea for retailers to stay on top of real time delivery trends and over communicate shipping statuses with customers.”
Amazon box.Getty
Despite the major rise in orders, UPS CEO Carol Tomé toldShipMatrixthat “UPS is running one of the most successful peak holiday shipping seasons ever.”
The shipping operations outletreported that on-time delivery ratesfor FedEx, UPS and USPS have all been above 95% since Oct. 1.
On Cyber Monday, UPS had to temporarily stop collecting orders from six major retailers including GAP, L.L. Bean Inc., Nike and Macy’s, after the number of orders exceeded their delivery capacity, according to theWall Street Journal.
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Bath & Body Works and Abercrombie & Fitch also won’t be able to fulfill orders to arrive before Christmas, according to CNBC.
Other stores, like Kohl’s, J.C. Penney, and Barnes & Noble, have turned to curbside pickup — which reportedly rose 88% since last year — and are offering customers an incentivized-discount if they use the service to avoid relying on mail carriers, the outlet reported.
“Retail is in for a reckoning,” Mike Cassidy of the e-commerce fraud-protection company Signifyd told CNBC. “You can add shipageddon and the weakness in retail’s fulfillment system to the list of trends that the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated.”
“The extent of the challenge will become crystal clear … as shipping deadlines for Christmas Eve delivery come and go,” Cassidy added. “It’s a harrowing time any holiday season, but this year it is especially stress-inducing.”
More information on retailers' shipping deadlines can be foundhere.
source: people.com
