Paper Shortages Hit Mail Industry—Is Relief Ahead?

[prwhite]

According to Mailcom, the paper shortage has exploded into a full-fledged crisis in the early months of 2022, as printers & mailers scrambled to meet current & future job requirements. Paper is a commodity—prices fluctuate based on supply & demand—and prices surged in the last 6-months, doubling in some cases, as printer allocations were imposed, rationing supplies.

Mailcom says there should be improvement in the supply of paper in the months ahead, but the price is anyone’s guess. But, what Can You Do? Mailcom offers some tips to survive the current crisis:

• Use bidding to find lower cost suppliers.
• Give printers several paper options to quote to find values.
• Delay printing non-essential matter.
• Redesign your mailing pieces to use less paper and/or postage.

 

[MailGuru]

Postage is also going up 7/10/22. Haven't checked the marketing mail pricing, but, First Class that doesn't qualify for a pre-sort seems fairly steep (10 to 14 percent).

 

[Shawnd]

Since this was on Mailcom I will stick to that source: USPS 6.5% RATE HIKE EFFECTIVE JULY 10; VOLUME MAILERS HIT HARD; PRC TO REVIEW

 

[MailGuru]

As usual, they only report part of the story, not, all of the story:

Retail First Class Letters		Current Price	New Price	Increase Amt	Increase Percent
Stamped	Up to 1 oz	$0.580​	$0.600​	$0.02​	3.4483%​
	Over 1 oz to 2 oz	$0.780​	$0.840​	$0.06​	7.6923%​
	Over 2 oz to 3 oz	$0.980​	$1.080​	$0.10​	10.2041%​
	Over 3 oz to 3.5 oz	$1.180​	$1.320​	$0.14​	11.8644%​
Metered
	Up to 1 oz	$0.530​	$0.570​	$0.04​	7.5472%​
	Over 1 oz to 2 oz	$0.730​	$0.810​	$0.08​	10.9589%​
	Over 2 oz to 3 oz	$0.930​	$1.050​	$0.12​	12.9032%​
	Over 3 oz to 3.5 oz	$1.130​	$1.290​	$0.16​	14.1593%​
Commercial First Classs Letters
Single Piece (Line B6)
	Up to 1 oz	$0.530​	$0.570​	$0.04​	7.5472%​
	Over 1 oz to 2 oz	$0.730​	$0.810​	$0.08​	10.9589%​
	Over 2 oz to 3 oz	$0.930​	$1.050​	$0.12​	12.9032%​
	Over 3 oz to 3.5 oz	$1.130​	$1.290​	$0.16​	14.1593%​
Automated Presorted		AADC
	Up to and incuding 3.5 oz	$0.461​	$0.491​	$0.03​	6.5076%​
		Mixed AADC
		$0.485​	$0.515​	$0.03​	6.1856%​

 

[PricelineNegotiator]

As usual, they only report part of the story, not, all of the story:

Retail First Class Letters		Current Price	New Price	Increase Amt	Increase Percent
Stamped	Up to 1 oz	$0.580​	$0.600​	$0.02​	3.4483%​
	Over 1 oz to 2 oz	$0.780​	$0.840​	$0.06​	7.6923%​
	Over 2 oz to 3 oz	$0.980​	$1.080​	$0.10​	10.2041%​
	Over 3 oz to 3.5 oz	$1.180​	$1.320​	$0.14​	11.8644%​
Metered
	Up to 1 oz	$0.530​	$0.570​	$0.04​	7.5472%​
	Over 1 oz to 2 oz	$0.730​	$0.810​	$0.08​	10.9589%​
	Over 2 oz to 3 oz	$0.930​	$1.050​	$0.12​	12.9032%​
	Over 3 oz to 3.5 oz	$1.130​	$1.290​	$0.16​	14.1593%​
Commercial First Classs Letters
Single Piece (Line B6)
	Up to 1 oz	$0.530​	$0.570​	$0.04​	7.5472%​
	Over 1 oz to 2 oz	$0.730​	$0.810​	$0.08​	10.9589%​
	Over 2 oz to 3 oz	$0.930​	$1.050​	$0.12​	12.9032%​
	Over 3 oz to 3.5 oz	$1.130​	$1.290​	$0.16​	14.1593%​
Automated Presorted		AADC
	Up to and incuding 3.5 oz	$0.461​	$0.491​	$0.03​	6.5076%​
		Mixed AADC
		$0.485​	$0.515​	$0.03​	6.1856%​

I find this offensive as I only understand chaos. You are attempting to remove the hysterical theatrics that we all need in our lives on a constant basis. Please refrain from spreading facts and logic in the future.

 

[PricelineNegotiator]

I find this offensive as I only understand chaos. You are attempting to remove the hysterical theatrics that we all need in our lives on a constant basis. Please refrain from spreading facts and logic in the future.

Why are people reacting to my post with the laughing emoji? Can't you tell I'm being serious?