Definition of a Blind Shipment
A blind shipment is when consignee / receiver of the shipment is not aware of the shipper or its origin.
The term double blind is used when the shipper does not know where the shipment will be delivered.
The reasoning behind blind and double blind shipments is the distributor does not want their customers to know where the product is coming from to protect against them from trying to go direct or in the double blind situation the distributor also does not want the shipper to know where their product is going so they don’t go direct.
In most cases, the freight provider will add an additional fee to the shipment because of the additional work that is often required to protect the distributor in the transaction.
Often times, blind shipping and drop shipping are used interchangeably, but they should not be. When a shipment is drop shipped all parties know where the product originates and where it is delivered. Drop shipping is used to reduce the number of touches and freight moves to deliver a customer order.
Blind Shipments for Ecommerce Orders
In addition to distributors, many online storefronts and Amazon sellers use blind shipments to protect their supplier sources so to ensure buyers do not try to go direct in the future.
This practice allows ecommerce retailers to reach more buyers and not have the expense of maintaining a warehouse full of product.
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