Amazon remains in negotiations to extend its USPS partnership but is reassessing its delivery strategy after learning the Postal Service may hold a reverse auction that would require major shippers to bid for facility access. The unexpected shift injects uncertainty into Amazon’s network at a time when it is rapidly expanding Amazon Logistics and investing heavily in rural delivery. Because Amazon accounts for a sizable share of USPS revenue, a split would significantly strain the agency and could accelerate Amazon’s rise as a competing carrier, reshaping how retailers meet growing consumer expectations for fast, reliable delivery.

Over 40% of direct marketers are concerned about declining response rates and budget constraints relating to printing, paper, and postage, according to Quad’s Direct Marketing Revolution 2023 report. And 32% are struggling to provide relevant, personalized, and customized messaging for consumers.

Retailers take last-mile fulfillment into their own hands: Companies like Costco and Amazon are building their own logistics networks, to the detriment of FedEx and UPS.

OCC pick favors sweeping changes like Fed takeover of accounts: Saule Omarova’s radical proposal has splintered Senate Democratic backing for Biden’s nominee—just as the very nature of banking is also being questioned by market forces.

Ecommerce supply chain issues—from out-of-stock products to delayed deliveries—have been at the forefront of consumers’ minds since the beginning of the pandemic. Well before the 2020 holiday season, concerns mounted about “shipageddon,” a potential event in which the supply chain wouldn’t be able to adequately meet significantly elevated ecommerce demand between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Consumers have been conditioned to expect fast delivery of online orders, but the pandemic has flashed a spotlight on how strained supply chains can get—even among savvy retailers like Amazon, which heavily focused its business on expedited shipping.

If Amazon is poised to gain share in the first half of the final week before Christmas, click-and-collect orders will tip the scales in the direction of big-box merchants during the second half of that week.