Supply Chain Satire
Shipping Rates Now Change So Often That Pirate Ship Has Stopped Telling Anyone
Carriers are adjusting prices several times a week. The label company has decided you would rather not know, and it may be right.
SAN FRANCISCO—Shipping prices are now changing so frequently that Pirate Ship, the discount label company that used to warn customers before every rate adjustment, has announced it will stop, on the grounds that nobody wants to hear from it that much and, honestly, it does not want to talk that much either.
In an email to customers, the company said carriers are now changing rates multiple times per week, which it blamed on a shift toward dynamic pricing set by algorithms instead of rate sheets. It will still send notices about major service changes, peak season surcharges and holiday deadlines. For everything else, sellers can check the rate calculator, like checking the weather.
Sellers greeted the news with relief. "I used to get an email on Monday that rates would change Wednesday, and on Wednesday an email that rates had changed Tuesday," said Dolores Whitcombe, who sells vintage teacups out of a spare bedroom in Akron, Ohio. "Now I simply assume the price of a stamp is a mood."
"A rate sheet used to be a document. Now it is more of a rumor with a barcode."
- Rate change emails sent
- Rate change emails read
| Period | Rate change emails sent | Rate change emails read |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1 | 1 |
| Mar | 1 | 1 |
| May | 2 | 1 |
| Jul | 4 | 1 |
| Sep | 9 | 0 |
| Oct | 14 | 0 |
Source: The Daily SKU Loading Dock Desk; one seller's inbox, read aloud, with sighs
The same week, eBay warned sellers that its negotiated USPS Ground Advantage rates would change again on Oct. 25, one week after the previous change, without listing the new amounts. Logistics analysts said this was a bold new standard in transparency: telling customers that something will happen, and trusting them to find out what.
Supply chain consultants said sellers should adapt by building flexibility into their operations. "We advise clients to price shipping like you would price a wedding gift for a coworker," said Barrett Szabo, a fictional parcel strategist. "Have a range. Be prepared to feel bad either way."
Some sellers have begun weighing every package twice, once before printing the label and once after, to see if the price changed in between. Several report that it did.
At press time, a seller had finished taping a box, looked at the rate calculator and gently untaped the box, to give it a moment to think.
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Riffing on: Pirate Ship Stops Rate Change Alerts As eBay Warns Of More USPS Shipping Changes, Value Added Resource