FedEx Suspended Service for 1,400 Freight Customers
Carrier dropped businesses to ease congestion in burdened network; some service has been restored
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The Future of Retail: How Will the Pandemic Change How We Shop?
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The Future of Retail: How Will the Pandemic Change How We Shop?
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By
Thomas Gryta
June 24, 2021 5:30 am ET
FedEx Corp. suspended about 1,400 customers of its Freight shipping service earlier this month, a move that surprised customers and was aimed at easing a congested network taxed by relentless package volume.
The shipping and logistics giant dropped the customers without notice, leaving some businesses hunting for a new option to move their products. FedEx resumed service to some customers this week. While a surge in e-commerce spending during the Covid-19 pandemic has strained shipping companies of all sorts, FedEx has lagged behind rivals in keeping deliveries on time this year.
A FedEx spokeswoman said the cuts were “designed to minimize network disruptions and balance our capacity and demand to avoid backlogs across the country—particularly in the most capacity-constrained Freight service centers.” The company is due to report quarterly financial results after the market closes Thursday.
Colorado-based Diversified Innovative Products Co., a family-run maker of disposable ink pans for printing presses, had an order waiting on its loading dock for a FedEx pickup that never happened.
“There was no correspondence sent, and we were notified the day that shipping ceased via a phone call from our rep,” said Theron Johnson, president of the company. It has used FedEx for 30 years and did $304,000 in business with the shipping company in 2020, he said.
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