Is eBay looking into opening it's own Shipping Service in the USA?
Summary: The discussion explores the rising shipping costs impacting e-commerce, with a suggestion that eBay could introduce its own shipping service to alleviate the issue. Many participants express skepticism about this idea, citing the logistical and financial challenges involved. Some suggest that Amazon could extend its delivery services to non-Amazon items due to its established infrastructure. Others doubt that eBay would make such an investment, noting that the company lacks the necessary facilities and logistics. There's a consensus that while changes are needed, eBay may not be equipped to implement them effectively.
Shipping costs are rising. There isn't much competition and that means shipping companies can charge anything they like. As a result, ecommerce is taking a hit. On items below $50, shipping is eating away at profit margins that are slim to begin with. On small and inexpensive items below $50, the pendulum is swinging in favor of brick and mortar shops.
If ebay were to open it's own shipping service, and offer significantly lower rates, the smaller merchants will be able to compete better.
thief_in_the_night_100_rating_seller
·3 weeks agoebay isnt spending a dime on anything except penthouses and well, i cant say or it will be deleted.
fullers_uk
·2 weeks agoWhat ebay could do is use AI to make a picture of a truck covered in ebay logos or even make one truck, you will stand less chance of seeing the truck than seeing the coca cola xmas truck, the parcel will still be delivered by a guy in a 15 year old ford transit connect with a hole in its muffler, the guy will get 20 cents for each delivery and a $200.00 fine for every parcel that late, the guy bought a new muffler on ebay but is was made in china and doesn’t fit, he contacted the seller who offered him a 3% discount which he refused so asked ebay to step in, ebay issued a return label but the QR code would not print and the muffler was too big to use a drop off locker so the guy took the 3% discount and stuck the muffler in his lawn to hang christingles on during the holidays.
plasticgalaxies
·3 weeks ago · EditedActually, it will be AMAZON. the cost of scaling this would be too much for ebay to handle. Amazon is already getting their feet wet with some business deliveries for certain businesses. they have the workers and the trucks. they will just keep expanding. give it 3-5 years i bet we will have an Amazon shipping option
thief_in_the_night_100_rating_seller
·3 weeks agoIt will be? It missed its chance.
They were the first ones on the block and now only hold 3% of ecommerce. over 40% is amazon. You do the math.
plasticgalaxies
·3 weeks agowhat does your comment even mean? My point is Amazon is getting into the package delivery business from NON AMAZON items. They will be just like fed ex/usps etc. soon. The difference is Amazon will actually be able to compete with the usps because they have the infrastructure to go EVERYWHERE.
tobaccocardyahoo
·2 weeks agoI recently drove from Mass. to Western PA. There were more Amazon trailers on the road than there were trailers from major freight carriers.
The Amazon trailers were hauled by small trucking companies.
There might have been about the same number of while unmarked trailers.
We passed the Old Dominion depot and it had so many trailers that I said the Teamsters must have the weekend off. We passed an Amazon depot and it was as chock full as the Old Dominion.
If Ebay wanted to start a trucking service, I do not know where they would find the drivers. All of the large trucking cos had help wanted signs on the backs of their trucks.
fullers_uk
·3 weeks agoI have a nightmare a few years ago, I dreamt of a fleet of Boeing 767's lined up on the apron with ebay logos on them. The amount of investment it would take to start it from nothing to functional would be huge, the best they could do is use a service thats already up and running and charge them to put ebay logos on everything and sub contract out customer service for the system to a third party, as to a managed system the term managed is very vague and input from management one sided.
christworks
·3 weeks ago · Edited@interloper-com If eBay opened its own "shipping service," as in start a carrying company, then we will pay more in fees than what you pay on the postage now.
I do believe eBay will roll out a managed shipping program before the end of the year. I hope it happens before the start of Q4 rather than in the midst of it, but I fear it will happen in the middle. Whether it will be structured more like Poshmark, with a single flat rate, or more like Mercari, with multiple flat rates, I don’t know.
I do believe we will see other companies get into the shipping game. Amazon is the most obvious, but there are others.
frugalmarketplace
·2 weeks agoEBay needs to do something ..the shipping is killing us along with multiple other factors.
shire123
·2 weeks agoWe can't sit around looking for others to solve these problems. Rising costs are a fact of life. Some types of selling are no longer viable in this environment and may never come back. So we either adjust or go on to something else.
frugalmarketplace
·2 weeks agoI am not sitting around waiting for someone else to solve problems. Did you remember we are dealing with corporate america.
monroe67
·3 weeks ago"If ebay were to open it's own shipping service, and offer significantly lower rates, the smaller merchants will be able to compete better."
If wishes were horses, beggars would ride.
The premise seems faulty on its face.
How on Earth could eBay open or offer its own shipping service
AND, at the same time, offer significantly lower rates ???
Not in today's world, not in today's economy.
annadryl
·3 weeks ago · EditedAre you suggesting that ebay should open up and crew thousands of offices or drop-off points across the country? What if my small town doesn't get one? What would that do to our fees? What's wrong with the several options that we already have and are free to choose from? Are they going to buy thousands and trucks and pay thousands of drivers? I could type all night but I'll stop here.
tobaccocardyahoo
·3 weeks agoIt would be a toss up as to whether if Ebay wanted to do this, they could.
Ebay has no facilities around the country to allow it to set up the distribution hubs needed.
It has no warehouses, or fulfillment centers or retail stores.
Amazon's shipping works and saves money because it has sites for its independent contractors who do last mile deliveries to get the merchandise.
Walmart uses gig economy workers to pick up orders at its stores.
Ebay has no infrastructure to do other than take orders to be fulfilled by its sellers, and their choice of shipper.
This idea can only appeal to people who have no clue what is involved in the process. These are often the same people who think that Ebay management is incompetent. In spite of that they think those same incompetents can add logistics and transportation to the skills they lack without bringing down disaster/
lawnmowerpartsstore2
·3 weeks agoJeff Bezos started Amazon in 1994 after quitting a lucrative Wall Street career. Recognizing the rapid growth of the internet, he moved to Seattle and began operating an online bookstore out of his garage. The company launched in July 1995 and scaled into a global e-commerce and tech empire
tobaccocardyahoo
·3 weeks agoJeff Bezos' major skill was raising money for his company. And continuing to do so when he was losing money while investing heavily.
For all of those who think they are better than drop shippers, they should know that Amazon's book business built its reputation in the book business based on using Ingram Books, a major wholesaler to fulfill the bulk of his orders.
thief_in_the_night_100_rating_seller
·3 weeks agoebay aint doing anything except taking you and your sisters lunch money.
lakefor94
·3 weeks agoWhat is it that eBay might be considering to ship?
thief_in_the_night_100_rating_seller
·3 weeks agotheir coffin to amazon.
shire123
·3 weeks ago · EditedCan you imagine the complexity and huge cost for ebay of having to be able to ship everywhere in the world?? So who would handle all the packages? There is not an ebay center anywhere other than the corporate offices. Ebay would have to buy lease all the delivery trucks and other equipment to sort and move the packages. Look at all the problems the USPS, UPS and FedEx have. Ebay will NEVER take that risk.
gal220joy
·3 weeks agoMaybe I'm thinking wrong but somehow, ebay takes the risk for overseas shipping.
monroe67
·3 weeks agoYes, when an item is shipped using eBay International Shipping.
dbmm-media
·3 weeks agono
lawnmowerpartsstore2
·3 weeks agoThat would be Awesome if Ebay did in fact have their own shipping service :)
soh.maryl
·3 weeks agoIt seems we can all already figure out that there's little likelihood of that occurring. Now, Amazon, for instance, because they already have the basics now.
ryry-jj
·3 weeks agoAmazon is a shipping company. Technically eBay could partner with Amazon to utilize their drop off and delivery services. We could just print the label as Amazon delivers, and drop off designated locations. Im sure they would charge sellers an annual fee plus shipping, however....but it could work if a partnership has value. Amazon wants to be the carrier for any and all items people buy on line
soh.maryl
·3 weeks agoYou've come up with some very good and interesting points. Personally, I think it's only a matter of time before AZ takes over the USPS, at least the package delivery service of that department of the US government. They already appear to be better equipped to handle it than the current service provider.
ryry-jj
·2 weeks agoYa, Amazon is able to take advantage of the current modern infrastructure, were as USPS is bogged down in an infrastructure outdated and old. VEry hard to climb out of that and pivot.
Think of it like this, the US built an infrastructure of telephone lines, our communication was the best in the world, then cell phones showed up an obsoleted all that infrastructure. Now with a cell phone you can do business anywhere in the world and really do not need to be located in a place that invested in any previous infrastructures ...not quite this simple, but if you are behind the times with technology its hard to get out in front, especially if you have years and years or retired worker on pensions & retirements without a solid way of supporting that group. Im mean, how many workers have retired with "full retirement" from Amazon with 25 years?
Sears was actually the first "Amazon", they just dominated print catalog merchandise, if only they knew how to translate that to e-commerce...Amazon basically took the Sears catalog and put it on line, and said "we are controlling the shipping, too'