United States Postal Service

There’s that old Bob Dylan song about times a-changin’ that I won’t bother to quote further. But it seems to hold true moreso year after year, and 2008 is no exception. So while some of us continue to exchange “happy new year” greetings with one another, I’ll send along one last new year’s greeting with what I believe to be the top five actions you should act on, examine or just ponder to bring your catalog/multichannel business in sync with the times. 1. Get your matchback system working smoothly at once. Assign someone in either your marketing or operations departments to do nothing

In this second of my two-part series, I’ll examine how the shape of your catalog and mail quantities effect on U.S. Postal Service processes may influence future rate increases. I’ll also provide some tips for preparing yourself now for these increases. First, I don’t expect the USPS to eliminate the rate distinction between letters and flats. That said, the USPS will continue on the road to having shape reflected in its rate structure. Thus, the weight of a mail piece will continue to be less important than in the past. The increased reliance on shape in the last rate case reduced the effect of

The Direct Marketing Association called a special conference on Dec. 17 at its New York City headquarters to engage its cataloger members in helping take preemptive strikes against a growing number of states seeking to enact do-not-mail legislation. The first half of the more than an hour-long meeting, co-hosted by the DMA’s President/CEO John Greco and Executive Vice President of Government Affairs and Corporate Responsibility Steven Berry, served primarily to remind catalogers of the merits of catalog shopping on society and what catalogers and the DMA do to be environmentally responsible with catalogs. Then Greco and Berry described ways the DMA intends to lead

In the first of a two-part series examining the recent passage of the postal rate-making reform law and its effect on catalogers, this week I’ll provide background on the U.S. Postal Service’s rate-making policy and how the new postal reform law will benefit direct marketers. First, let’s examine why and how catalogers found themselves on the short end of the stick following the implementation of new postal rates last May. Way back in 1990, the USPS asked the Postal Rate Commission (PRC) to recommend postal rates that would begin to reflect the processing-cost differences caused by the shape of the mail. The least

People On the Move Coldwater Creek: Dennis Pence, who cofounded this multichannel women’s apparel cataloger 23 years ago, retired as CEO on Oct. 30. He’ll retain his role as chairman, however. President/COO Daniel Griesemer was promoted to president/CEO and will serve on the company’s board of directors. Griesemer joined Coldwater Creek six years ago. dELiA*s: The multichannel teen/tween apparel company has named Chris DiChiaro as the divisional merchandise manager of its Alloy division. Prior to joining dELiA*s, DiChiaro spent seven years as the vice president of merch-andising of intimate apparel for Victoria’s Secret Direct. dELiA*s also announced the hiring of Lee Bissonnette as senior director of

There’s a lot that’s already been written on both the passage of postal reform and the 2006-7 postal rate case. To your never-ending relief, I have no intention to speak to either issue here. Sure, your business life often depends on rate case. And the passage of the first new postal law in three decades is nothing to sneeze at. Nonetheless, it’s the “little stuff,” the seemingly niggling changes in postal rules and mail make-up procedures that can carry costs that might add more to the cost burden mailers have to carry than inflation-bound rate changes. As one of our board members likes to put

Postal liasons from printer Quebecor World report that the following Southern California post offices have been affected by the California wildfires. Closed facilities: San Diego District: Dulzura (91917), Jamul (91935), Potrero (91963), Rancho Bernardo (92127/8), Escondido (92025), Fallbrook (92028), Palomar Mountain (92060) Pauma Valley (92061), Rancho Santa Fe (92067), San Marcos (92069), Santa Ysabel (92070), Valley Center (92082), Warner Springs (92086), Blue Jay (92317), Cedar Glen (92321), Crestline (92325), Fawnskin (92333), Green Valley Lake (92341), Lake Arrowhead (92352), Rimforest (92378), Running Springs (92382), Skyforest (92385) and Twin Peaks (92391) Los Angeles District: Malibu, CA (90265) - Malibu Colony Annex, Point Dume, La Costa

Dick Goldsmith of The Horah Group says that 81 percent of consumers like getting the mail, according to U.S. Postal Service figures. “They’re not all going to opt out of getting it,” he said. But he cautioned that he once bought his daughter something from J.Crew and continues to get a J.Crew catalog every week, “which is a waste.” He discussed the momentum of the “do-not-mail” movement during last week’s DMA07 Conference in Chicago. And you can hear the podcast interview (http://www.catalogsuccess.com/download?sid=80440) with Goldsmith and Meta Brophy from Consumers Union, as well as other on-the-scenes commentary by findiing our exclusive Best of DMA07 coverage

People On the Move MCM Electronics: Phil Minix has been named president of Centerville, Ohio-based B-to-B catalog distributor MCM Electronics. A member of the Catalog Success editorial board, Minix is a 12-year veteran of the catalog/direct business. He most recently served as president of Astral Direct. Prior to that, he worked at Reiman Publications and J. Schmid & Assoc. Sharper Image: Andrew P. Reich has been named EVP of merchandising. James Sander has been named SVP, general counsel and corporate secretary. Eddie Bauer: Neil S. Fiske, the head of Limited Brands’ Bath and Body Works, has been appointed president and CEO. Fiske, 45,

Last Wednesday, from the time I hopped a train from our Philadelphia headquarters to Manhattan until my return trip home at the end of the day, I had something of a revelation as to how the U.S. Postal Service does its job. I took part in a behind-the-scenes tour of the Morgan Processing & Distribution Center in midtown Manhattan, sponsored by the Direct Marketing Club of New York. Along with thirty-some people (mostly bulk mailers), my eyes were pried wide open on what it takes to process our mail on a daily basis, not to mention, the complex process involved in bulk-mailed catalogs.