The Free to Grow CFO Podcast Why Growing Sales Can Actually Hurt Your Profit
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Episode Summary
If you think shipping and fulfillment costs during BFCM are just a fixed cost of doing business, this episode will show you how much control you actually have.
In this episode of The Free to Grow CFO Podcast, Jon Blair sits down again with Tony Runyan of Red Stag Fulfillment to break down how brands can control shipping and fulfillment costs heading into Black Friday Cyber Monday 2026. Tony explains why proactive, continuous communication with your 3PL β not perfect forecasting β is the real lever for cost control, from year-over-year volume comparisons to flagging hot SKUs and bundles early enough to pre-kit them. Jon and Tony dig into the hidden costs of bundling, like location load balancing across warehouses turning a single order into two shipments in different carrier zones, and the customer experience risk of split shipments during an already tense holiday season. Tony also breaks down exactly how carrier peak surcharges work in 2026 β both the flat per-package demand fee and the volume-based multiplier fee that stacks on top of it β and why diversifying carriers, even at a worse rate, can be worth it as a margin-protecting backup plan.
If you're planning your BFCM shipping and fulfillment strategy and want to control costs instead of getting surprised by them, this one's for you.
Key Takeaways
-Proactive, continuous communication with your 3PL is the single biggest lever for controlling peak season shipping costs.
-Diversifying carriers, even at a less favorable rate, can be worth it as a margin-protecting backup plan if your primary carrier has issues during peak.
-Carrier peak surcharges in 2026 include both a flat per-package demand fee and a separate volume-based multiplier fee, both worth modeling into unit economics ahead of time.
Transcript
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00:36 Intro
01:18 Proactive 3PL planning: best practices for peak season
03:47 Why your forecast should be a living, continuously updated plan
05:23 How bundling and kitting change fulfillment workflows
06:03 Location load balancing across warehouses
08:12 The margin trade-offs of promotions, ad spend, and shipping
09:32 Hidden costs: refunds, customer experience, and repeat purchase risk
10:22 Carrier diversification and setting customer delivery expectations
12:38 Treating your 3PL as a true strategic partner
16:00 Why proactive, continuous communication is the biggest lever
16:25 2026 carrier peak surcharges explained
20:06 Final thoughts