When it is critical that products land on time, air freight offers a more convenient and expedited route to market than shipping by sea. But isn’t air freight prohibitively expensive? Amazon Global Logistics wants to change this perception.
With the holidays fast approaching, the last thing a retailer needs is a delay in stock arriving at its warehouse. When sourcing and shipping goods from manufacturers in Asia to fulfilment centres in the UK, EU, and the US, there are so many unforeseen issues that can prevent items from arriving in time it can be difficult to plan your seasonal sales activities accurately.
When the unforeseen happens and shipments are delayed, retailers either risk losing out to competitors already holding stock or find themselves holding unsold inventory after the peak sales period is over. Moreover, with retail experts predicting that this year’s holiday shopping season is going to happen earlier than ever, any delays in accessing stock may be catastrophic.
Amazon Global Logistics
Amazon Global Logistics offers retailers the opportunity to ship their products directly from their manufacturers in Asia to Amazon fulfilment centres in the UK, EU, and the US at a discounted rate.
The service is similar to the Ship to Seller Storage (STS) offering we recently wrote about on this blog. The air freight service offers all the advantages of an end-to-end service, including collection, labelling, palletisation, and customs clearance at both ends of the journey. Items are then made available for Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) and shipped directly to customers. This reduces the time products are left in transit from weeks (and potentially months) to just a matter of days.
How Much Does Air Freight Cost?
A recent email to Amazon sellers pitched the air freight service at:
- China to the UK starting at £7.76/KG
- China to Germany starting at €8.30/KG
- China to the US starting at $5.22/KG
While these prices will almost certainly be higher than shipping freight by sea, they will dramatically reduce the risk of being left with empty shelves when your customers are most active.
For more information, check out this video.
