Tag: USA

DMA opposes cataloger coalition's stance on Standard flats rates

Posted by | May 14, 2007 | |

The differences between the Direct Marketing Association and the Coalition of Catalog Mailers became public Friday, just 48 hours from the inauguration of the new postal rate regime in place today.

Members of the DMA were told by president/CEO John A. Greco Jr. that it doesn’t support a Coalition of Catalog Mailers request to the Postal Regulatory Commission that gives catalogers time to adjust to the high rates rather than lowering them.

Mr. Greco explained that in its May 2006 rate case filing, the USPS requested rate increases in the 9 percent to 12 percent range for Standard Mail flats. However, the PRC sought increases in the 20 percent to 40 percent range.

The PRC’s recommendation would effectively have overturned a 17-year program to gradually increase the rate differential between letter-shaped and flat-shaped Standard Mail, and resulted in an additional USD 678 million in costs for Standard flats marketers.

In addition, the DMA sent a separate letter to the USPS Governors, asking that they reject the PRC’s Standard Mail flats recommendations. The association specifically pointed out that the mail volume the PRC had assumed would now be unrealistic, based on the doubling of the USPS’ requested increase.

The Governors on March 19 returned the Standard Mail flats increases to the PRC for reconsideration but asked the PRC to rebalance the rates in Standard Mail, including raising letter-shaped mail rates and lowering flat-shaped mail rates.

However, the Governors allowed the PRC-recommended rates to take effect “under protest,” which meant that the rates would go live today.

At this point, Mr. Greco explained that the DMA strategy was to push for quick PRC reconsideration so that any rate reduction stemming from its reconsideration could be put in place by today.

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Total Online Sales Expected To Hit USD 259 Billion In 2007

Posted by | May 14, 2007 | |

As the Internet grows up, computers have moved over to make room for clothing at the top of the sales list. According to the first part of The State of Retailing Online 2007, the tenth annual Shop.org study conducted by Forrester Research, Inc. (Nasdaq: FORR) of 170 retailers, Americans last year spent more online on clothing than they did on computers for the first time in history. The report found the apparel, accessories, and footwear category reached USD 18.3 billion in 2006 and is expected to hit USD 22.1 billion in 2007. This year, 10 percent of all clothing sales are expected to occur online.

The report suggests that the apparel and accessories category has experienced strong sales because of an influx of new companies and liberal shipping policies such as free shipping on returns and exchanges. Additionally, apparel and accessories retailers are integrating new technologies onto their sites including rich imaging, where customers can zoom and rotate merchandise or see the item in different colors before buying, all of which eases the mind of a customer who is hesitant to purchase apparel online.

Computer hardware and software, long the frontrunner for nontravel online sales, moved into second place in 2006 at USD 17.2 billion, followed by sales of autos and auto parts (USD 16.7 billion) and home furnishings (USD 10 billion).

According to the report, 2007 online sales (including travel) are expected to rise 18 percent to USD 259.1 billion. Sales excluding travel will reach USD 174.5 billion. This strong growth will come off of an impressive performance in 2006. Online sales last year rose 25 percent to USD 219.9 billion. Excluding travel, online retail sales rose 29 percent to USD 146.5 billion, representing six percent of total retail sales in 2006.

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US magazine selects Postal Service Public-Sector 'Employer of the Year'

Posted by | May 14, 2007 | |

The nation’s first and only career-guidance and recruitment magazine for people with disabilities who are at undergraduate, graduate or professional levels has named the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) Public-Sector Employer of the Year.

In its current issue (Spring 2007), Careers & the disABLED magazine says the Postal Service received the award “for its progressive efforts to recruit, hire, and promote people with disabilities” and was selected as one of the top five employers for whom readers would most like to work or believe is progressive in the hiring of people with disabilities.

The Postal Service has many programs designed to ensure that all employees have an equal opportunity to compete in every aspect of employment. Careers & the disABLED magazine highlighted one in particular, Video Remote Interpreting (VRI) and Video Relay Service (VRS). These video interpreting services enable employees who are deaf or hard-of-hearing to communicate with supervisors, co-workers and others in real time as an alternative to on-site interpreters or text-based telephone systems. The VRI and VRS systems are now available to more than 1,100 deaf and hard-of-hearing postal employees.

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UPS Shareowners elect Board and reappoint Deloitte & Touche

Posted by | May 14, 2007 | |

Shareowners of UPS elected a Board of Directors for a one-year term and ratified the appointment of Deloitte & Touche LLP as the company’s independent registered public accountants.

Ten directors stood for election to the Board of Directors and all were overwhelmingly elected. The appointment of Deloitte & Touche to serve as the company’s independent auditors for 2007 also was ratified.

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US mail campaign "Have You Seen Me?" to announce changes

Posted by | May 14, 2007 | |

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), the United States Postal Service (USPS) and ADVO announced changes to the “Have You Seen Me?” mail program. Beginning May 14, photos of America’s missing children will be larger, in full color and prominently featured on page four of ADVO’s ShopWise mail circular. Previously, the photos were smaller and printed in black and white on a detached address label, familiar to most Americans as the white Missing Child Card they receive in the mail.

As a direct result of leads generated by the “Have You Seen Me?” program, 144 missing children to date have been safely recovered. According to NCMEC, photos are the number one tool parents and law enforcement officials have in their search for missing children. By featuring recent or age-progressed photos of missing children and their alleged abductors, the program empowers the American public to help safely recover missing children.

“ADVO has the power to reach 114 million American homes every month. Our expansive reach is why this public service program works. After more than 20 years of success, we’re excited to see this program evolve,” said Rob Mason, ADVO President. “These enhanced photos provide even more hope that these children will be found and reunited with their families.”

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