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I used our shipping software to pull quotes on shipping this copy of @DrIbram's HOW TO BE AN ANTIRACIST:
@FedEx Home Delivery: $14.03
@UPS Ground: $23.87
@USPS Media: $2.94
The end of the United States Postal Service would be a disaster for bookstores and libraries.
@FedEx Home Delivery: $14.03 @UPS Ground: $23.87 @USPS Media: $2.94The end of the United States Postal Service would be a disaster for bookstores and libraries.
The independent bookstores that have managed to pull through the pandemic so far have all done it thanks (at least in part) to ecommerce. Selling books online relies on shipping books. We're no exception; we were proud to send books to all 50 states. https://twitter.com/ravenbookstore/status/1255309234247536641?s=20
Our sending books to all 50 states wouldn't have been possible without the @USPS. Our remaining open this far into the pandemic might not have been possible either.
A world without the @USPS is a world where only big corporations can afford to ship books to customers.
A world without the @USPS is a world where only big corporations can afford to ship books to customers.
We're already fighting every day to combat Amazon's predatory pricing. Every day we ask our customers to pay a little bit more for books if they believe in what we're doing.
Imagine how much harder that ask becomes if we have to charge $15 for shipping instead of $2.49.
Imagine how much harder that ask becomes if we have to charge $15 for shipping instead of $2.49.
Amazon can get around this because of their massive scale and wealth. Not satisfied with any of the available shipping options, they simply built their own massive (and dangerous) shipping network. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/carolineodonovan/amazon-next-day-delivery-deaths
It goes without saying that an independent bookstore can't afford to build its own massive nationwide shipping network. So we rely on the @USPS. But the USPS is under attack from a lot of different angles, and it's frankly a bit alarming. https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/15/politics/postal-service-new-director/index.html
Even worse, some (like @stacyfmitchell) are noticing that everyone except Amazon is getting pushed aside by the Postal Service itself https://twitter.com/stacyfmitchell/status/1286642799820058624?s=20
We're so happy that we've made it this far into the pandemic with our team intact. This is largely thanks to using @USPS to send books to wonderful customers all over the country.
I hope we can count on the USPS to grow our business into the future.
I hope we can count on the USPS to grow our business into the future.
