The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) has proposed raising the cost of its parcel select service in January 2019, boosting the price for packages weighing over one pound by 9.3% and lighter packages by 12.3%, according to CNBC. The agency also may raise the price for priority mail services.
While these increases will not affect holiday 2018, shipping costs and logistics are still a major concern during this season: 54% of retailers say driving sales on Cyber Monday is more important to their company than Black Friday, according to a survey by RetailMeNot. Retailers looking to maximize conversions on that day should keep in mind that 60% of shoppers said they won’t complete a holiday purchase without first securing free shipping.
Advertisement
Fulfillment windows also need to be taken into consideration, as 40% of shoppers say taking more than two days for delivery would prevent them from making an e-Commerce purchase, while 63% expect delivery within three days as the standard, according to Kibo. This concern is particularly important for Millennials, 89% of whom want their gift purchases in hand as soon as possible, according to RetailMeNot.
The USPS proposal comes six months after President Trump issued an executive order setting up a task force to examine the financial stability of the USPS. The price bumps “reflect the best judgment of the Postal Service Governors, who are seeking to establish new rates that will keep the Postal Service competitive, while also providing the Postal Service with much needed revenue,” according to a USPS spokesperson.
The planned cost increase for priority mail is 5.9%,while priority mail express would go up by 3.9%. Additionally, the first-class package service would move to zone-based pricing. A full listing of proposed fee changes can be found at https://pe.usps.com/PriceChange/Index.
