UPS puts shipping limits on retailers

UPS has introduced shipping limits on several large retailers to be able to cope with the holiday online shopping rush.

Paul Ziobro from the Wall Street Journal reported:

United Parcel Service Inc. imposed shipping restrictions on some large retailers such as Gap Inc. GPS -3.37% and Nike Inc. this week, an early sign that the pandemic-fueled online shopping season is stretching delivery networks to their limits.

The delivery giant on Cyber Monday notified drivers across the U.S. to stop picking up packages at six retailers, including L.L. Bean Inc., Hot Topic Inc., Newegg Inc. and Macy’s Inc., M 5.38% according to an internal message viewed by The Wall Street Journal and confirmed by UPS workers in different regions. “No exceptions,” the message said.

CNN’s Jazmin Goodwin wrote:

“Knowing the unique constraints the industry is facing this peak season, we worked with our carriers early on to collectively build a strategic plan of execution,” Gap said in a statement. “We have been very satisfied with the level of partnership and commitment we have received from our carrier base, and especially that of UPS, and expect that to continue through the holiday season.”

A Nike spokesperson said: “We expect the majority of these orders to meet estimated delivery dates and are communicating with consumers any changes in delivery.”

Noah Higgins-Dunn from CNBC noted:

UPS had set “specific capacity allocations” for its customers over Black Friday weekend and throughout the holiday season as it works to deliver packages at record volumes, Glenn Zaccara, UPS’ director of media relations, told CNBC on Wednesday.

“We’ve worked with our large retail customers to ensure they are aware of how much capacity is available to them,” Zaccara said. If the demand exceeds the planned allocations, UPS will “work with our larger customers to ensure the volume gets picked up and delivered as more capacity becomes available in our network,” he said.