📦 Bol.com Increases Shipping Threshold
Bol.com, a leading Dutch online store, has raised its free shipping minimum to €25. This change marks the first adjustment to the threshold since 2012. According to Bol.com spokesperson Joost Morel, the increase is necessary due to rising logistics costs and inflation. "We have used the €20 threshold since 2012. In that period, that amount has never been indexed to inflation. At the same time, logistics costs did rise," Morel explained on Flemish radio.
🛒 Encouraging Larger Orders
The company is encouraging customers to consolidate their purchases to reduce the number of shipments. Bol.com aims to keep transport movements between distribution centers and customers as low as possible. This strategy is also seen as a response to the growing acceptance of higher costs among consumers. KU Leuven Professor of Marketing Els Bruegelmans noted that "consumers have started accepting that everything is getting more expensive," including shipping costs.
📚 Free Shipping for Dutch-Language Books
Despite the increase in the free shipping threshold, Bol.com has decided to continue offering free shipping for Dutch-language books. This move aligns with the company’s roots as an online bookshop, a sector in which they began in 1999. Bol.com has also been active in promoting literacy through its Bollebozen initiative, which supports children's reading in Flanders and the Netherlands.
📈 Industry Trend
Bol.com is not alone in this trend; other major players like Amazon and Zalando have also been re-evaluating their shipping policies. According to Professor Bruegelmans, companies are increasingly struggling with the costs associated with free shipping. To cope, they are either raising the minimum order amounts for free shipping or offering subscription models where customers pay upfront for unlimited free deliveries. These strategies aim to offset rising costs and maintain profitability.
Is raising the free shipping threshold good for customers?
