Who are we to tell you that your pets aren’t human? We’re not, so we won’t. In fact, one of the primary drivers of the pet eCommerce industry's growth is the increasing trend of pet humanisation. Pet owners, particularly Millennials (oh hey) and Gen Z, have embraced the concept of ‘pet parenting’, viewing Fido as a cherished family member...

Yet another day to get deliveries to the (very important) recipient on time and intact. With online revenue increasing 54% year on year for Mother’s Day - and flowers being the most ordered last-minute gift item - it’s essential to have a plan and stick to it.

Just as we've had the pleasure of partnering with BullyBillows, we admire their commitment to redefining the pet accessory landscape. As they continue to disrupt the market with their forward-thinking designs, we look forward to supporting their journey and helping them seamlessly deliver their products.

Shipping is often the last touchpoint your customers have with your business, making it a vital part of their overall experience. Efficient shipping processes can have a significant impact on customer satisfaction and loyalty. Here are a few reasons why streamlined shipping is vital.

Once bustling hubs of commerce and community, UK highstreets are undergoing a dramatic transformation. Traditional brick-and-mortar stores are facing unprecedented challenges in the wake of the eCommerce revolution. But it’s not just this revolution that’s affecting the high street. The cost of living and rising operational costs are leaving both large and small retailers in a chokehold. Let’s delve into the various factors contributing to the changing landscape of UK high streets, exploring the impact of eCommerce and other key trends reshaping the retail sector.

Our guide to contingency and capacity planning for Black Friday and Christmas for Shipster clients.

To ensure your eCommerce store maximises its potential on Black Friday, we've compiled a list of 10 essential tips to help you prepare for the shopping frenzy. And yes, we know - it seems to get bigger and earlier each and every year.

The eCommerce landscape is rapidly evolving and businesses are constantly seeking innovative ways to enhance customer experiences. One such innovation that has garnered significant attention and investment is artificial intelligence (AI). We’re not just talking about robots and automated chatbots - but intelligent automation (IA) that’s digitally transforming the eCommerce world.

Just when you thought you had mastered all the social media and eCommerce platforms, something new lurches in the distance. Is it a bird, is it a plane? No, it’s another social media channel trying to convince people to purchase in-app.

The rise of eCommerce has completely transformed the way people shop, and brands have quickly adapted to meet the growing demands of online shoppers. And those demands equal quick, reliable delivery, often with free returns.

The EU is in the process of rolling out a new import system called Import Control System 2 (ICS2). Find out more here.

When maintaining warehouse operations, sometimes the simplest tasks often get overlooked. Allowing these to fester and accumulate can create havoc and limit the efficiency of your output. More importantly, it can be a safety issue for your employees. Trip hazards, mess, dirt - all of these things can increase the risk of accidents and decrease morale. With the first quarter of the year out of the way, now’s the time to consider spring cleaning your warehouse. Below, we’ve created a hand strategy to get you started.

Great success! You’ve managed to get your customer to the checkout and they’re on the cusp of making a purchase. You already know the intent is there and it’s time to get them to sign on the metaphorical dotted line.

We’re now closer to 2063 than we are to 1963… we’ll just let that sink in. But whilst you contemplate the meaning of life and how time is a construct and definitely not real, let’s take a look at the future of eCommerce in 2023.

With financial crisis looming across the UK and beyond, as well as turmoil in Ukraine, predictions for this year’s Black Friday (November 25th 2022) and Cyber Monday sales are looking a little different…

It’s a Friday afternoon and you’re just about to finish up with work. It’s been a long slog and you’re pretty ecstatic about the weekend on the horizon. You don’t have any concrete plans, but you’re prepared to take things as they come...

New data suggests that 99% of retailers will offer same-day delivery by 2025...

As an eCommerce company, you’ll no doubt already understand the importance of online reviews. Customers like having that reassurance - and it’s a cost-effective way of promoting your products and services online. As with any kind of online content, reviews come with their own difficulties, from managing negative reviews to ensuring all platforms are monitored.

Choosing the right content management system (CMS) for your online store is essential for handling large increases in traffic and a demand in products. It’s worthwhile spending time researching the most appropriate CMS for your eCommerce business type, ensuring it can perform as required and stand the test of time. Future-proofing is so important in the online world - especially when it comes to making money.

We’ll outline exactly how to successfully gift online influencers and how you can build relationships with them to help promote your brand in the future.

Influencer marketing has made waves in the marketing world over the past few years, particularly in the fashion industry. Lifestyle bloggers, Instagram influencers, and YouTube stars have donned the latest garments and charged their ring lights to promote some of the top brands out there...

Amazon is one of the largest online marketplaces in the world. It’s also one of the biggest search engines too - yup, more users than ever before are using Amazon as their go-to search engine for products, finding exactly what they need, without having to use Google.

We love all of our client’s equally - but this Valentine’s, we’ve only got eyes for one of our biggest crushes, Melvin & Hamilton 😍

When it comes to the eCommerce world, every retailer is different, which is why it makes sense that there should be shipping rules to fulfil every request. But can multiple rules slow down the shipping process? Not if you implement the right ones.

Customers are frantically searching for the best Christmas gifts, decorations, and food - and with COVID-19 repercussions and Brexit in full swing, this is having a massive impact on the distribution and eCommerce world. With 87% of UK households buying online in 2020, meeting demand for Christmas 2021 may be no different.

It’s in the name really - Cyber Monday is one of the biggest and busiest online shopping days of the year. But how exactly do you successfully promote your deals, without getting lost in all the online noise?

When exactly should you start activity marketing for Black Friday? And what kind of tactics should you use? Below, we’ll outline not just when you should start, but how you should start too.

There are now around 1 billion active users on Instagram. Considering there are almost 8 billion people worldwide, this is a substantial amount. What exactly does that mean for brands?

The brewery market is saturated with new, up-and-coming brands, as well as established names that have been doing this gig for a long time. But what’s becoming more and more clear is that it’s the battle of the packaging, which is making some brands stand out more than others.

In the eCommerce world, trust is a big factor when it comes to influencing buying decisions. Online customer reviews can make or break a product, as well as impacting buyers’ opinions of your business as a whole.

In this article, we’ll outline exactly what an eCommerce discount strategy is, how it works, the benefits of implementing it, and some of the top strategies you should consider.

We polled 100 online shoppers in the UK about their online returns preferences and habits.

With world earth day coming up on 22nd April, it’s a great time to start thinking more about how you can reduce your warehouse’s effect on the environment. A fantastic way to do this is through the use of eco-friendly packaging. Green technology has come on leaps and bound in the past few years, and there are now many ways to package your products both safely and sustainably.

The award ceremony airs on 15th April 6:30pm. Those that want to watch must register at: https://www.digitalcityfestival.com/register-to-attend

Shipster is bespoke software that is designed to be highly customisable by nature. This allows you to use Shipster in whatever way best suits your companies changing needs. You can make changes to your set-up as often you like through our dedicated support team.

Throughout the year, consumer demand ebbs and flows and warehouses have to adjust their processes accordingly to accommodate. The yearly busy periods are usually centred around Christmas, Black Friday, Mother’s and Father’s Day, Easter and Valentine’s day depending on your products and target market. Shipster is highly customisable software, which means you can tweak the way you use it to prepare for these busy periods and manage a sudden increase in workload...

As Valentine's day approaches, we’ve been thinking about how much we love all our lovely clients. In the spirit of the holiday though, we can only have one Valentines, so this year we’re naming The Couture club our “Client Crush” of the year!

Many fashion retailers, including our clients, will be looking to London Fashion week to help them predict what the big trends of 2021 will be. Whilst the high fashion you see on the runway is mostly reserved for the rich and famous, these styles are always diluted down into trendy, ready-to-wear clothing.

2020 has been a significant year of constant change, and our clients have been requesting a variety of rules to keep their Shipster effective. Rule changes and additions are always no extra charge on top of your monthly support fee, and our technical team are always happy to create new functions to improve Shipster. Here are some of the top most used rules of 2020:

Santa allows us to reveal the Shipster configuration he uses to send billions of parcels over Christmas.

Information in the event of a Deal- or No Deal- scenario. Summary steps: 1. Send us your EORI number if you have not already 2. Add accurate descriptions to all your products, and put procedures in place to ensure it happen with all new products 3. Add commodity codes to your products and email support@shipstersolutions.com to tell us in which attribute we can find these codes.

Using our numerous shipping rules you can fully customise your Shipster to save you the most money when packing and shipping parcels. Here are 9 of the most common rules our clients use to reduce expenditure.

Prepare for Black Friday: Our scheduled shipping rule freeze, help with additional installations and getting help on the day.

It's spooky season, which means scary movies, ghosts, costumes and trick-or-treat bans are on everyone's mind. Let's make it a work activity by thinking about what might be lurking in the unexplored shadows and crevices of your warehouse, by looking for these signs of ghostly activity...

Rachel answers what it's been like providing Shipster support from home during the covid-19 pandemic.

Since fashion e-commerce retailers form a large portion of Shipster users, we have developed a large range of shipping rules that cater to their unique needs. These rules are designed to help streamline the shipment of clothes and accessories, saving these businesses time and money!

There may be more ways to reduce your warehouse costs than you would think…

The benefits of taking your despatch system to the next level with Shipster. Are you a small-to-medium business looking to take the leap?

We get a lot of requests about automating the decision making process for deciding which box/envelope packaging to use. The issue can be solved in several ways...

Shipping internationally may be more complicated than you’d expect and involves navigating multiple countries’ varied postal systems and policies on foreign imports. Here are some of the ways Shipster can help streamline this process for you.

Every now and then you will come across a shipment that refuses to cooperate. How do you process yours?

In fashion, customers are ditching bras for pyjamas (Adore Me’s new best selling item) and swimwear for loungewear. Customers seem to be putting off buying Spring-Summer collections, delaying the bikini and buying into comfort.

Actions we're taking during the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Processing hundreds or thousands of shipments every day means even the smallest inefficiency in your shipping process can stack up unnecessary costs. Changing how you allocate and ship parcels according to their weight can be revolutionary.

Here are the trendiest custom shipping rules of 2019 – ideas that have seen many of our clients through a fantastic year of growth for not a penny more. Perhaps there’s something that can be adapted for your warehouse in 2020!

Just a little entry about how we’re celebrating the festive season this year :)

Do you need to start looking into temperature-controlled shipping or curious about cold shipping in general? Let’s dive in…

"Here's to all the people who are delivering a merry Christmas in the UK. The factory workers, warehouse staff, pickers, packers and drivers..." Check out our video thanking every person involved behind the scenes when it comes to this manic time of year!

For Those That Don’t Know: Who are they? What happened? And how did they achieve one of the biggest beauty e-commerce launches in history?

The Most Popular Time to Start Christmas Shopping is October-November. Don’t be reactive this year, brace for impact.

Our Highlights: Latest Insights into the expectation of Delivery Customers, Black Friday Figures & eCommerce Innovations