News, tactics, and views for cross-channel commerce
ISSN 1362-2315 - issue 175 - November-December 2009
Carrying on amid
the postal strike
By Sherry Chiger and Miri Thomas
While just about everyone in the country was hit, however. Multititle mailer Foot Shop, for
affected to some degree by the Communication instance, usually sends the majority of its orders
Workers Union (CWU) strikes against Royal Mail, by Royal Mail, but it switched to Parcelforce
direct marketers were hurt on several fronts. There during the strikes, says marketing director Robin
was the matter of ensuring that customers received Beech. “But this causes big increases in fulfi lment
their orders in a timely fashion, of course. Those costs, and we’re not going to pass these on to the
that rely on catalogues and other postal mailings as customers.” He estimates that a “prolonged strike”
sales vehicles had to review drop dates would have cost Foot Shop, whose brands include
and order curves, as well as consider Cosyfeet and Walktall, about £17,000 in increased
alternative marketing tools. And those parcel delivery costs.
that still receive a signifi cant proportion Nauticalia also paid more to have its packages
of orders and payments via post had to delivered. “We negotiated rates at the beginning
adjust their cash fl ows. of our season with Royal Mail,” says Mark Wilby,
Yet the direct sellers contacted by operations director for the cataloguer/retailer
Catalogue e-business did their best to of maritime-themed gifts. “As a result of this we
buffer their customers from feeling the incurred additional costs from a weak position
effects of the work stoppages. As Mark of negotiation with alternative suppliers.” He
Reeves, commercial manager of equine estimates that during the weeks of intermittent
supplier Derby House, puts it, “The strikes Nauticalia paid £1 more per parcel delivery
postal strike has been an issue internally, than it had using Royal Mail.
but thankfully, as we planned for this Not every direct merchant could afford to
type of scenario, it hasn’t affected our switch to a more costly parcel courier. Nick Race,
customers’ deliveries.” managing director of lingerie mailer Woods of
Morecambe, says switching its parcel delivery to
Part and parcel a courier would have cost three times what the
Forty-four percent of retailers surveyed company pays Royal Mail. What’s more, the courier
by Maginus, a provider of multichannel companies “wanted to tie me down to a 12-month
software solutions, said that the strikes led commitment—and who can blame them?” he says.
them to switch from Royal Mail to another So Woods of Morecambe continued to ship
carrier, as Derby House did. “Without most of its parcels by Royal Mail—except those to
going into too much detail we managed customers in the environs of the company’s North
to come to an arrangement that works for Lancashire headquarters. Race hand-delivered
our business and our courier that means those orders himself. As for the parcels that Royal
we haven’t had any fi nancial impact on the Mail was delivering, Race says his customers hadn’t
business,” Reeves says. reported any delays.
Other cataloguers did take a fi nancial BrightMinds, a cataloguer of toys and games, also
continued on page 8
Sponsored by
Special focus Tactics Views
pages 9-17 Delivery options: pages 18-25 Print catalogues as web pages 26-43 Website and software reviews,
a comprehensive roundup of the service traffi c drivers, inventory forecasting advice, Herschell Gordon Lewis on copywriting,
offerings of nearly two dozen carriers tools to boost online sales, and more Catalogue Exchange, and S Cuttlebutt
ceb175.indd 1 7/11/09 13:08:39
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