Shipping can represent a meaningful portion of the total cost of liquidation merchandise, particularly on smaller orders. The good news is that there are several ways to reduce your shipping cost per unit and improve your overall landed cost.
The key is not always finding the lowest freight quote, it is getting the most merchandise possible for the freight you are already paying.
Below are several ways Via Trading customers can optimize their shipping costs.
Ship Multiple Pallets Together
LTL freight includes certain fixed costs associated with pickup, delivery and administration. Because of this, shipping one pallet can sometimes be relatively expensive compared with shipping several pallets together.
This is especially true when shipping to residential addresses and/or when shipping with a lift-gate since both are relatively fixed flat charges.
Once the initial freight costs are covered, adding a second or third pallet may increase the total shipping charge by much less than the cost of shipping each pallet separately.
This can significantly reduce the shipping cost per pallet and your overall landed cost per unit.
Assume merchandise costs $750 per pallet:
1 Pallet
- Merchandise: $750
- Shipping: $145
- Total landed cost: $895
- Landed cost per pallet: $895
3 Pallets
- Merchandise: $2,250
- Shipping: $275
- Total landed cost: $2,525
- Landed cost per pallet: $841.67
In this example, purchasing three pallets reduces the landed cost by more than $53 per pallet.
The actual savings will vary depending on shipment origin, destination, merchandise, pallet dimensions and current freight rates.
Consider Delivery to a Freight Terminal
Delivering palletized freight directly to a residence can involve additional charges for services such as residential delivery and liftgate service.
One alternative is to have the shipment delivered to a nearby freight terminal and pick up the merchandise yourself. Most major metropolitan areas have freight terminals where customers can collect palletized shipments using an appropriate truck, trailer or rental vehicle.
Before choosing terminal pickup, consider:
- Distance from the terminal
- Vehicle or trailer rental costs
- Fuel costs
- Time required to pick up the shipment
- Equipment needed to safely transport the merchandise
In some cases, terminal pickup can save money. In others, paying for residential delivery may make more sense once your time and transportation expenses are considered. Compare both options before deciding.
Add Case-Packed Merchandise to a Pallet Order
If you are already shipping one or more pallets, you may be able to add smaller case-packed items to the same shipment with only a limited increase in freight cost.
Case-packed merchandise is generally smaller and lighter than palletized merchandise and can often be consolidated with an existing pallet shipment.
This allows you to spread the freight cost over a larger merchandise purchase and potentially reduce shipping as a percentage of your overall investment.
In the example below, the customer starts with one pallet of water dispensers costing $540, plus $220.90 in shipping. Shipping represents almost 30% of the total purchase. After adding two case packs, the merchandise total increases to $975 while shipping increases by only $9.91, to $230.81. This reduces shipping to about 19% of the total landed cost.
Use our online shipping quote tools to add and remove merchandise and see how different order combinations affect your estimated freight cost.
Maximize Available Truck Space
Full truckload freight is generally priced based on the truck and route rather than the exact number of pallets inside the trailer.
A standard 53’ trailer can typically accommodate approximately 26 standard pallets when loaded in a single row configuration, & depending on the type of merchandise and pallet dimensions, at times pallets may be double stacked to fit up to 52 Pallets in a single Trailer.
If you are purchasing a truckload and there is unused space available, adding additional merchandise increases the value of the shipment without changing the transportation cost as truckloads ship at a flat cost irrespective of how much merchandise is loaded.
For example, if your freight cost is the same whether the trailer contains 20 pallets or 24 pallets, adding merchandise to utilize the remaining space lowers the freight cost allocated to each pallet.
The same principle can apply when combining merchandise from different listings or programs when consolidation is available.
Below are a couple of mathematical examples to illustrate the potential savings
Buyer orders 24 pallets + shipping compared to 48 Pallets + Shipping
Original Order
| Item | Qty | Price | Ext Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| WM Pallet | 24 | $350 | $8,400 |
| Shipping | $800 | ||
| Total | $9,200 | ||
| Landed Cost/Pallet | $383.33 | ||
| % Paid in Shipping | 8.70% |
Modified Order
| Item | Qty | Price | Ext Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| WM Pallet | 48 | $350 | $16,800 |
| Shipping | $800 | ||
| Total | $17,600 | ||
| Landed Cost/Pallet | $366.67 | ||
| % Paid in Shipping | 4.55% | ||
| $ Savings per Pallet | $16.67 | ||
| % Saving | 4.35% |
Buyer Orders 24 Pallets + Shipping compared to 24 Pallets + 2 Other Pallets they purchased to add to the back of the truck
Original Order
| Item | Qty | Price | Ext Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| WM Pallet | 24 | $350 | $8,400 |
| Shipping | $800 | ||
| Total | $9,200 | ||
| % Paid in Shipping | 8.70% |
Modified Order
| Item | Qty | Price | Ext Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| WM Pallet | 24 | $350 | $8,400 |
| New Footwear Pallet | 2 | $1,500 | $3,000 |
| Shipping | $800 | ||
| Total | $12,200 | ||
| % Paid in Shipping | 6.56% |
Think in Terms of Landed Cost
The lowest-priced merchandise is not always the lowest-cost merchandise once freight is included.
When evaluating an order, consider your:
Merchandise Cost + Shipping Cost = Landed Cost
Then evaluate that landed cost by pallet, case, unit or expected resale value.
A slightly larger order with a higher total freight bill may actually provide a lower shipping cost per unit and better overall economics.
Use Real-Time Shipping Quotes to Compare
For most listings, Via Trading allows you to calculate estimated shipping costs directly through our website.
Add merchandise to your Shopping Cart, change quantities or combine multiple listings to see how your estimated freight cost changes.
This allows you to compare different order combinations before making your purchase.
Need help optimizing a larger shipment? Contact our sales team. We can help you evaluate pallet, LTL and truckload options and determine the most cost-effective way to move your order.
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