Consolidated Freight

Have you ever opened a package to find the item you ordered surrounded by an unnecessary amount of shipping pellets, air bags, or just plain old air? Perhaps you then wondered to yourself why didn’t they just use a smaller box? And if you’re like any member of our finance team, you run through a series of calculations wondering how much expense and cost was wasted on materials and freight!

How about the time you ordered a dozen things from an online store, and your items arrived over multiple days in 7 different shipments and packages. For a direct consumer, that may amount to a little more than an annoyance, but to a business, that can be a real expensive inefficiency. Time is money, and processing multiple receipts, 7 receiving reports, 7 pack slips, and probably 7 invoices adds up. Are those costs necessary, and isn’t there a better way?

When we started PIA Products, we knew that consolidating freight would be an important value add to our customers. While it may have been easier for us to ship products from multiple locations throughout the country, we realized that having 97% of our items shipping from a single, centrally located warehouse, would be of the greatest benefit to our customers and clients. Exceptions include oversized items like 80” TV’s that we drop ship from the manufacturer to deliver at the lowest price possible, because there is no sense incurring a shipment cost to our warehouse, only to ship it out again at an additional cost to the customer.

As you look for ways to streamline your business, and increase efficiency, freight consolidation opportunities provide a chance to realize some cost savings. Aside from a lower freight charge, you’ll realize savings in your warehousing and accounting operations. Less shipments to receive, and boxes to touch, means reduced paperwork throughout your receiving and payables process. Those savings will add up, and can be used to fund other projects, or improve your net profit and bottom line.

Thankfully the air we breath hasn’t been monetized yet, so don’t get caught footing the bill to ship it. Check with your suppliers and partners to see what opportunities exist to reduce your costs, and generate savings from a consolidated ordering, shipping, and freight approach.