What's Causing The USA's Logistics Troubles? [Podcast]

Logistics in the USA in late 2021…where to begin?

CNN is calling it ‘a supply chain nightmare,’ USA Today bemoan that “Food prices are going up, gas prices are climbing, and finding that great gift for the holidays might get tougher…[due to] struggles linked to our global supply chain,” and The Wall Street Journal counsel that “expectations for relief increasingly are being pushed deep into 2022 and even beyond.”

What’s causing the disruption? Chiefly logistics issues which Renaud investigates in this episode with American supply chain and logistics expert, Marshall Taplits founder of Ship It Done a 3PL warehouse and e-commerce fulfillment center based on the East Coast.

What’s causing the issues, how can they be fixed, and what can SME e-commerce sellers do to get through this difficult period? Marshall gives his insight into these questions and more…

 

Listen here!

Listen: Marshall Taplits | Why Are US Logistics Under So Much Strain? (+ E-commerce Challenges) 

Watch: Watch it on YouTube

 

Episode sections

  • 00:00 – Greetings & introducing Marshall Taplits & Ship It Done
  • 04:19 – What’s causing the logjams at US ports, logistics to fail under the strain, and delays in getting products to customers? Is it as simple as, ‘people have been buying more stuff due to lockdown?’ 
  • 07:42 – The move to ‘Just In Case’ buying. 
  • 11:26 – Why is delivery to US ports being held up? Is simply it a lack of road and rail capacity to move goods away after delivery? 
  • 15:23 – Is the government likely to be able to bring about changes to improve the logistics situation? 
  • 17:37 – Could the 3-4 week break for manufacturers during Chinese New Year give the USA some much-needed breathing room to clear the excess goods and stabilize the supply chain situation? 
  • 23:41 – What can SMEs do to weather the storm, are there any workarounds? 
  • 27:20 – How about ports on the East Coast, are they less congested than California? 
  • 30:27 – What’s the situation with air cargo? 
  • 31:41 – The difference between FBM and FBA and what frontloading by air means and their benefits for e-commerce vendors. 
  • 35:38 – Is it faster these days to send a container from China to California Long Beach or New York Elizabeth? 
  • 36:20 – When shipping FBM is it cheaper to post products locally within the US than longer distances? 
  • 39:04 – Wrapping up

 

Related content…

 

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About Adrian Leighton

Adrian is the Sofeast group's experienced marketer and has worked in manufacturing for around a decade. He has a particular interest in new product development and sharing important manufacturing news from China.If you've read, watched, or listened to some Sofeast content, Adrian has probably had a hand in it!
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