Shipping Delays Cause Headaches for Retailers and Customers

A Reason to Buy Products Made In The USA 

This is February, right? February 2021, correct?

I ask those questions very facetiously and somewhat sarcastically. I know it is February, but what had me
confused was the box on the front porch with a ship date of Dec 6th – wait, it took 9 weeks to get to me?
Why did my electronic talking dog take nine weeks to be delivered from China - I think it could have walked to me faster!

I placed the order back in the beginning of December, thinking 3½ weeks is plenty enough time to get the package from China to Cincinnati. Then as Christmas neared and no package, I started to worry. By the time Christmas and New Year’s had passed, I honestly forgot all about the package until the box showed up on my porch on February 2nd , 2021. Yep it is February alright!

Shipping From Overseas

Now I am determined to discover why it took over 9 weeks to get this talking dog to me. I did some research and realized that I am not the only person that has had to wait for a package; some people I read about are still waiting. One of the articles I read in EasyShip magazine made me really glad that I even received my package.

In my readings, I discovered that there are numerous reasons why shipments from overseas have been delayed, and delayed, and delayed. As you can probably guess, COVID has played a pretty large role. Not only have its effects delayed many shipments, they have also limited the amount of shipments. Some carriers whose contents actually made it to US shores still have their products sitting on ships in the harbor because the US port authorities refuse to permit them into the country. COVID has also led to the depletion of dock employees. The ports of San Francisco, Los Angeles and Seattle have seen their crews reduced by more than half during surges in their areas.

The latest and largest disruptor to international shipping is the lack of shipping containers. According to The Loadstar , all carriers are reporting severe shortages of the most popular 40 ft high-cubes. Some of these containers are just sitting on ships waiting to be unloaded. The majority of the containers are sitting empty and idle for as many as 45 days, and still others are reaching up to 66 days. For comparison, pre-COVID containers cycled through in 10 to 15 days.

Certainly you and I can read between the lines with these issues and understand that obviously prices are going to go up; prices for shipping, prices for the container and ultimately the price of the products inside those containers will see a cost increase. That means you and I will see an increased retail price on goods from overseas.

As a matter of fact, the Advertising Specialty Institute shared a story January 21 st that stressed the pending price increase for promotional and specialty products coming from overseas. After reading that article top to bottom I came to the conclusion that I should first be happy I received my talking dog at all and second that if I were to purchase it again, it will definitely cost more now.

The shipping issue will be compounded even more in the coming weeks as the calendar points toward China’s Lunar New Year on Feb. 12th , when many plants and services in China will be closed for a week or more. Authorities in Beijing are also re-instituting strict societal lockdown measures in parts of the country amid a recent reemergence of COVID cases. These two predicaments not only limit shipping, but production as well, both of which add to limited availability of goods and certainly more price increases.

How do we limit the effects of the shipping issue?

Right after the first of the year, we had an inquiry from an individual (let’s call him Mr. Jones) with a shipping issue similar to mine, however worse yet, his package still had not arrived and he was told it had not even shipped. See, Mr. Jones was also targeting the delivery of his customized challenge coins for Christmas 2020. The plan was to share with each of his employees a collectible round of his own design, highlighting the company and their successes. Mr. Jones ordered these rounds from overseas more than three months before the big holiday, and now he has nothing. Mr. Jones asked if Osborne Coinage could help him and complete his request ASAP. Now Mr. Jones has the right idea – buy American, purchase from Osborne Coin!

Offer: Download or request a print of our FREE Catalog!

After pondering Mr. Jones’ dilemma, I realized there are numerous reasons to purchase from Osborne Coin aside from completely avoiding the shipping issues!

• Stability - Osborne Coinage is the oldest and longest continuously running mint in the United States, with over 186 years of minting expertise.
• Heritage – Osborne Coin once minted the ration tokens for WWII, minted buttons for President Lincoln’s political campaign and minted collectible rounds commemorating the loss of the Space Shuttle Challenger.
• Timing – Osborne Coin produces goods faster than overseas manufacturers, with preset deadlines and delivery dates that are met or exceeded.
• Regional – Osborne Coinage is strategically located in Cincinnati, Ohio, placing it within a 600- mile radius of 60% of the US population, enabling us to ship and have our product delivered within 2-3 days of its completion.
• Direct – When you work with Osborne Coinage you are working directly with the mint, no middleman and no third party expenses. You work one-on-one with our engravers, representatives and production team.
• Family – Not only are you working one-on-one, but you are working with a third generation family business that is American born and bred and you are supporting small business with every purchase.
• Support the USA – Buying from Osborne Coin keeps America working. Osborne has 67 employees whose livelihood depends on what they mint for you! Furthermore our supply chain is estimated to impact well over 200 jobs with metal procurement, secondary packaging and delivery services.

Mr. Jones shared with me that he originally purchased from overseas because the cost was slightly less, but once he figured in his shipping nightmare, months of aggravation and observation of the final product, he realized that he would have saved a penny. Instead, Mr. Jones gained the opportunity to support America and state proudly that the collectible rounds he had minted were indeed Made In the USA.

When purchasing from overseas, you are always at the mercy of so many variables. You would think I would know better working for Osborne Coin, a company that prides itself on making everything right here in the USA. Knowing full well that buying American supports American jobs, jobs like mine, it should have been a no-brainer for me to have more confidence in a local, regional or national provider than one clear across the globe.

So what do I do with the electronic talking dog from China now? Do I keep it for myself, give it as a late, late, late Christmas gift or maybe save it for next year’s holiday? One thing that I do know for sure, I should have bought American to begin with.

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