Shipwire's New Site

You’ve probably already seen the new Shipwire website. While we’re proud of the hard work we’ve put into redesigning our new site, we’re not resting on laurels. The new redesign is only phase one of something even bigger. In the next few months, we’re planning on rolling out an all new back end to complement and complete our look.

Last Wednesday, a new look for Shipwire’s administrative panel was released which showed off a newly skinned backend to match the frontend redesign. From the Dashboard to Account Setup, every table and menu were coated with a layer of our new awesomeness.

But this is only the beginning. Keep your ear to the ground – more exciting changes are coming to Shipwire.com.

To stay in the loop on the latest updates to the Shipwire website and engine, as well as to keep up to date on the freshest news in the world of shipping logistics and order fulfillment, follow us by email by clicking on the link on the right. Don’t forget to “Like” us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@shipwire).

Shipwire offers a compreshensive enterprise level order fulfillment and logistics solution to growing companies looking to outsource the hassles of shipping and fulfillment and grow their business. We enable ecommerce merchants to expand their businesses domestically and internationally while saving time and costs. Check out our 2 minute video to learn more about us. Or try us out for free today.

New Account Summary

Old Account Summary

New "Adding a Product"

Old "Adding a Product"

New "Sending Merchandise"

Old "Sending Merchandise"

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For those who don’t know, SXSW is an annual festival held in Austin and is one of the greatest events you will ever attend.

Its focus is on interactive, music, and film, and it was ground zero for the launches of both Twitter and Foursquare.

This year we’re sponsoring a few industry insider events with a whole bunch of our friends, including Olark, Zendesk and Rackspace and would love to see every one of you come out! Here’s a quick run-down of the events we’re co-sponsoring:

Small Business, Big Party
RSVP here
When: 5pm-8pm Saturday, March 10 at Coyote Ugly Patio
What it’s about: This party is the only place the entire industry will gather during SXSW this year. Founders, executives, investors, marketing managers, business development, technical leads, media and resellers will all be here to close deals.

Small Business Web’s Ecommerce Hoedown
RSVP here
When: 5pm-8pm Sunday, March 11 at Coyote Ugly Patio
What it’s about: Come meet the movers and shakers from the world of ecommerce. Enjoy drinks and food and put on your best hand-shaking face to get some deals done!

Y Combinator’s Startup Saloon
RSVP here
When: 5pm-8pm Monday, March 12 at Coyote Ugly Patio
What it’s about: Y Combinator Startups want to buy you a drink at SXSW. We will bring an open bar and food. You will bring yourself and a stack of business cards. Deals will get done. Tales will be told.

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Shipwire is excited to announce our module for Virtuemart (Joomla) powered Web stores. Here are the install instructions -Virtuemart order fulfillment.

This is a free module provided by Shipwire.

The Shipwire module currently has been tested and supports Virtuemart version 1.1.9 with Joomla version 1.5. We believe it to be compatible with Joomla versions prior to 1.7. This is important to note as the most recent beta builds of Virtuemart for Joomla 1.7 are not supported. See more below on this.

The Virtuemart module connects to 4 Shipwire APIs

• Real-time order fulfillment
• Real-time shipping rating
• Real-time Inventory
• Real-time tracking

The Virtuemart module, while still in beta, plugs into all public Shipwire APIs. This means that you can automate the submission of orders, inventory and carrier tracking numbers between Shipwire and your Virtuemart powered store. We’re also really pleased to announce that you can display our warehouse shipping rates to your buyers in checkout. Real-time rates work across all our warehouses (and Shipwire Anywhere locations) and incorporate your Shipwire account shipping preferences. We hope the Virtuemart and Joomla community likes the module and gives us feedback.

It bears mentioning that this module is not compatible with he latest beta releases of Virtuemart 2.0.x for Joomla 1.7.x.
We want to be clear about this and explain why. We started this module a while back and the latest Virtuemart just released in December of 2011. We expect that many users will be taking their time in migration and we wanted the module to be a fit for customers today. We evaluated Virtuemart 2.0 and felt that its interfaces for shipping were not yet ready for us to consume. This was confirmed by user feedback. For these reason, our choice was to release our build for Virtuemart 1.1.9 on Joomla 1.5.

We look forward to your feedback and our participation with the community and customers using Virtuemart and Joomla.

To get started with adding Virtuemart to your Shipwire account, see the step-by-step guide Virtuemart order fulfillment.

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With the new year comes a time for new beginnings at Shipwire. I am pleased to introduce you to the new Shipwire website.

When I launched Shipwire in 2006, I hoped to help businesses outsource the hassles of storage and shipping so they could focus on growing sales. Now, almost 6 years later, returning from a recent visit to our Los Angeles warehouse, I’m impressed by the endless rows of product inventory and the entrepreneurial dreams they represent. That we now have 6 of these warehouses around the world is humbling. That our team keeps growing, and soon will have a 7th warehouse in Hong Kong, makes me immensely proud.

Since our initial launch in 2006, our customers and our platform have evolved. We initially launched the Shipwire platform just for entrepreneurs. We then learned that the mid-market multi-channel seller also wanted to use Shipwire. Meanwhile, the entrepreneurs who got their start on Shipwire have grown into mainstream brands. We’re now seeing both entrepreneurs and larger brands automate their sales, and expand their brands overseas, via our cloud-based logistics platform. The old Shipwire website spoke primarily to younger brands, and didn’t highlight our value proposition to mid-market merchants who sought to expand globally, and across more channels. Today, that changes.

On behalf of the entire team and our Board of Directors, I would like to introduce you to the new Shipwire website, brand, and mission statement – “Enterprise Logistics for Everyone™”.

Our new team manifesto to our customers makes me particularly proud. And our new video, which explains the benefits of Shipwire to new visitors, also gives a glimpse of the future we have planned for you.

As with all massive projects, this is the first of several phases. Today we relaunch the website, but the team is already hard at work designing the next version of the Shipwire application. This will take a few months, but we’re tremendously excited about it. We hope that you share our interest in continuing our growth together.

Best Regards,

Damon Schechter
CEO & Founder
Shipwire, Inc.

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The world’s largest electronics show, CES 2012, is almost upon us and as always Shipwire will be in attendance. We’ve decided to share some of what we know based on past experience so that you can be better prepared and know what not to miss at this year’s expo, along with a few things that we’d like to see at this year’s CES.

Hot Trends to be on the lookout for

Fuel cells.  It seems that fuel cells are coming to power portable electronics, with companies like SiGNa set to exhibit fuel cell-based chargers for various devices. AppleInsider also recently reported that Apple has filed a patent for fuel cell tech.

Bigger, better screens. 3D TVs were the big thing last year and it looks like there will be a strong theme of screens this time around as well. New developments in OLED will see a big announcement and one maker plans to unveil the world’s largest HDTV unit based on the technology. Not only that but LG is also announcing a 4K television which will quadruple the resolution of typical 1080p display.

Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) and new tablets. Last year, Honeycomb was released shortly after CES and was followed up by the new ICS in November. This means that there will be several new tablets released close to the $100-dollar mark. This accessibility will make tablets an even bigger trend than it already was, although as always there will only likely be a few winners.

What we’d like to see this year

More businesses focusing on selling directly to consumers.

Last year we lamented that everyone was focusing on selling to distributors. This is great, but finding a good distributor, getting their attention, and building a business relationship is harder than it looks. Distributors are attracted to products which already have success in at least one market. This is completely normal since they have their own risk tolerance and investing too much into unproven products can mean bad business (or worse) for them.  This means that if you’re selling a product without a track record, convincing distributors to partner with you may be more difficult than you expect.

The lesson is that with a new product, learning to sell direct in one market will work as an ideal proof of concept and will help you attract distributors for other markets.

Since last year we have seen many new customers – even ones that displayed at CES 2011 – join us as Shipwire customers, using fulfillment to reach their market directly.  We’re also seeing a huge increase in product crowd-sourced funding through venues like Kickstarter.  So we know that some innovative product makers are selling to consumers.

When we examined how exhibitors can be successful in finding and dealing with distributors, we found three major points that contribute to the success of the most successful retailers:

1. They sell online.  Many distributors are strong with both direct-to-consumer (B2C E-commerce) and B2B.  Many distributors have a complex chain of relationships when it comes to shipping to or on behalf of retailers. Don’t be surprised if you get asked to “drop ship” or ship to their buyers.  Like everybody in the supply chain, they are trying to simplify their supply chains as well.  Be prepared to offer them simple solutions.

2. Selling internationally. Selling in overseas markets is very important because it can help your business grow quickly, discover new customer needs, and hedge against local market downturns. It’s also a task that has many challenges so finding the right distributor is very important. The best distributors have strong overseas networks and know how to localize your product. Good overseas distribution partners are often hard to come by, so do your due diligence on them.

3. Smaller wholesale purchases, drop shipping and vendor managed inventory. To hedge against risk, the strongest distributors will only invest heavily (by buying larger quantities) in proven products. For unknown or unproven products they may ask you to drop-ship to consumers (incurring costs of holding inventory, shipping, etc.) or consign inventory to them where they will only pay for what they sell. This lets them unload their risk to you and keeps them a strong force in their market.

The truth is that each of the above three strengths can be used by any individual retailer and not just the largest, most powerful retailers. And most importantly, capitalizing on these strengths will not hurt your relationship with retailers but will actually improve it. Since distributors have large networks and the market you’re going after is smaller, there won’t be a threat of cannibalizing sales for them. This will help the distributor make the decision to purchase your product because suddenly you will be showing them something that has proven success in the market.

Our wish for CES 2012 is to see more exhibitors using fulfillment to break into new markets and sell their product directly to customers.

Parties and events:

Of course, CES is also known for big parties, ranging from celebrity events to awards ceremonies. You can see a full list of this year’s CES parties here.

CES party photo (c)Brian Solis

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Ace Ventura Movie - "Special delivery" scene

During the week following Christmas and New Year, warehouses everywhere start getting returns. Returns happen!  Now is a good time to review your  returns policy and how it will impact your buyers thoughts of you, and you bottom line.

Every year we see damaged product returns.  It’s expected that some products will get damaged.  Why does it happen? What happens behind the scenes?

One of my favorite movie scenes is the opening scene of Ace Venture Pet Detective. Ace, dressed like a parcel courier, is going to steal back a dog for its owner.  Ace puts a parcel through its paces in a hilarious scene (link behind image).

Who would have thought that today we would be seeing Ace’s patentent moves being usurped by parcel carriers all over.  Phone and security camera footage is popping up everywhere.  I’ve included a few below.

How do damaged product returns work?

We all know the experience, you open a package with high expectations, you reach in and find the object of your desire has been damaged.  Deflated, you return it for a new one.  Most retailers will promptly refund or reship the good.

• Notification and buyer return - When a buyer notifies a Shipwire powered merchant about a damaged product, the merchant reports it by clicking a button on the order.  We dispatch a shipping label and issue a Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) number so it can be tracked.
• Return and reship – The damaged product is sent back to the warehouse where it is received back into inventory as damaged.  A reshipment is typically triggered once the original is returned.  Some retailers will reship before the return is in inventory but after the RMA tracking is activated (when the buyer ships it back).
• Removed from inventory – Damaged product has a special classification in inventory.  This ensures that it won’t be confused for “good” inventory and shipped to buyers.  It also allows for easier inspection.  Many of our merchants choose to liquidate this inventory, or bulk ship it back to their manufacture inspection facility for final disposal and recycle.
• Automate Insurance claim – Shipwire Report a Problem selection initiates this process and begins tracking.  For do-it-yourself shippers, I know there are also 3rd party insurance services and consultants that can manage your shipping negotiations with carriers.

Who covers the damage?

This question comes down to when did it get damaged and which insurance was in place at that point.

Shipwire recommends and facilities a “chain of insurance” for our merchants.  Typically, goods come in to our warehouses from the manufacture (inbound), is stored at the warehouse (storage) and then shipped to fulfill buyer orders (outbound).  Insurance is available the entire lifecycle.  If a cargo container is washed overboard or product is damaged in freight then the freight insurance covers.  If a product is damaged by a forklift, then the warehouse insurance policy is looked to.  If the product is damaged between the warehouse and the buyer, the carrier insurance is looked to.

Fedex roughs up a delivery

For stored goods with Shipwire, warehouse insurance can be added to your inventory globally with 1-click in Account Settings.  Carrier insurance, above our included amounts, is a setting in Shipping Preferences.

Excessive damage claims can be a sign of bad packaging design

Work with your manufacturers to design durable packaging for transport.

Well designed shipping packaging protects the products inside from falls, impacts and weight crushing.  At the same time it has to be logical and reduce your costs.  Design for “maximum shipability”.

Here are some Shipwire resources if you want to keep reading.

• Packaging design considerations
• Packaging Requirements for inbound products
• Supplier instructions for packaging and labeling

If you built your own products and have your own shipping packaging.  You probably also know how much weight can be stacked on it before it crushes…right?

But, how did it get broken?

If a damaged product arrives on the doorstep, it is typically caused by 1 or 2 things.  Either the product was incorrectly packaged for it’s method of transit.  Or, the product packaging couldn’t live through the extent of the abuse that it was subjected to in transit.

Shipwire has evolved some pretty complex packing algorithms to aid pickers, minimize crush and ensure product fit.  Pack staff is trained and monitored to best packaging processes. We’re confident it leaves the warehouse well packaged and documented.

Packaging and crush protection is designed to handle most of the bumps and scrapes of transport. But more often than not, parcels and packages take abuse during transit.  They get cut open or broken open in customs and handed off between carriers.

Unpacking what is hopefully apparel

Most of that isn’t video’ed; but, with cameras everywhere now, we know that …

The last few feet are often the roughest.

Fedex delivery man tosses monitor over fence

With 7 million views and counting, FedEx got a lot of bad press this December when their delivery person tossed a monitor over a fence.  I’m sure the customer shipment will be covered by insurance or Fedex.  I very much doubt that the manufacturer designed the packaging to protect the product for this delivery.  Packaging is probably designed for a fall of a few feet only.

It’s not just Fedex.  UPS drivers get caught on camera too throwing deliveries to the door or delivering 20 feet to the neighbors house.  Packages get put behind brush, buried in snow, kicked, dropped or run-over in the last few feet of their trip.

Truck packing and unpacking

Driver throwing deliveries from truck

Parcel carriers get caught on video often treating parcels roughly during truck packing and unpacking. Most of the products are probably fine….most.

Expect boxes to be kicked, dropped, stacked with heavier boxes of them.  Some drivers have been caught throwing packages out the door (captions) or doing their truck “sort” with their feet (soccer style).

Most packaging is designed to handle some abuse from the carriers.  Throwing packages into and from a truck seems to be a common thread.

During “sort” or “processing”

When packages are shipped via the major carriers they are picked up from the warehouse by the carrier and delivered to a sort facility.  Packages are sorted by destination and consolidated with other packages going to the next depot.

USPS shipment damaged during sort

These sort facilities are massive operations with lots of automated systems to understand where a package came from and where it is ultimately going.  It’s not uncommon for smaller parcels to get hung-up in conveyors and ripped open.

In the warehouse

Products can get damaged in a warehouse.  Insurance is offered to cover against things like forklift damage.

Products damaged in the warehouse are set aside and don’t get shipped out. If a product arrived at a door damaged, the damage was most likely caused in transit.

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