The freight forwarder’s boss is still laughing and talking even though his funds have been cut off. More than 300 sellers have had their goods seized and need to raise 11.2 million to redeem their containers!

At noon on April 16, a seller revealed: "It is rumored that a certain Mason Express freight forwarder in YW has collapsed. It's really serious." That evening, a picture was circulated, "**Company's revenue is more than 3 million, it owes more than 12 million to external parties, and it has more than 300 customers. The solution is that customers share the responsibility based on the volume of goods." The news spread like wildfire in the industry, and the matter quickly fermented.

However, unlike the rumors on the Internet, the owner of the freight forwarding company did not run away, but was negotiating with the seller at the same table, but his attitude made the seller very dissatisfied. Now that the news suddenly broke, the seller learned that his goods had been detained as early as February, but he was still receiving the goods, which eventually led to the current serious situation, and the latest developments are not optimistic.

56 freight forwarders' containers were detained, and more than 300 sellers with goods worth hundreds of millions of yuan were involved

Over the past weekend, several sellers posted the following messages on Weibo:

The seller's words are fierce:

"Zhejiang ** Logistics Co., Ltd. *** illegally transferred and misappropriated the company's funds, and used the freight forwarding company it operated to embezzle more than 13 million yuan in logistics fees from more than 300 cargo owners, causing the destination port to be unable to pay fees and pick up goods, implicating the cargo operations of more than 300 customers. If the goods cannot be picked up within the specified time, the goods will be auctioned in the destination country, and the losses will be in the billions! So far, 56 containers of goods have been detained by shipping companies and foreign warehouses. Some of these goods were loans from the cargo owners, which greatly occupied the cash flow...

*** not only failed to deal with the follow-up issues and recover the losses, but also required all customers to pay an additional 13 million logistics fees to help them pay off their debts! A complete rogue!

We request the public security organs to file a case in accordance with the law, find out the whereabouts of ** Logistics’ funds as soon as possible , deal with the problem of goods stranded at the destination port, and investigate ** Logistics’ legal responsibilities.”

Other victimized sellers also complained:

-"I am one of them. More than 50 cubic meters of goods were detained at the port. The sellers are asked to raise funds to repay the debt."

- "The cargo of this company traveling with us is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars and is stranded in the port, unable to be picked up."

-"I am one of them. We have a container of goods."

- "Same as the victim, this guy still has the nerve to ask the owner to crowdfund to save the goods."

- "The 300 boxes of goods are worth more than 100,000 yuan, and the freight of nearly 50,000 yuan has been paid to this company in advance, but they still require us to pay 80,000 yuan to settle their debts."

"I am one of the victims. The value of the goods plus the freight is nearly 200,000. From now on, I will only choose freight forwarders that pay monthly or after withdrawal. I will not consider freight forwarders that pay in advance." A seller said sadly.

Another seller involved said that he had nearly 1 million pieces of goods stuck and there was no way out. According to the current situation, no one would pay the so-called "receivables", but the payables were real.

The goods were detained, and the parties came up with a plan to let the sellers share the burden according to the proportion of the goods. Previously, the shipping company said that the sellers needed to pay 1.8 times the original freight to redeem the goods. According to this algorithm, 20 sellers need to pay at least 100,000 in additional freight, and two of them need to pay freight of 730,000 and 710,000 respectively.

This made many sellers very angry: "This is simply blackmail!"

The goods have been detained in February, and now one cabinet costs 200,000

A seller involved told the editor what happened:

"56 containers were detained. The shipping company raised the price, knowing that we were in a hurry to ship the goods. Previously, they asked us to pay 1.8 times the original freight, but now they ask us to pay 200,000 per container. The value of the goods in these containers is hundreds of millions, and they are basically out of stock.

**Company started to have problems in February. They have detained containers and are still collecting goods from customers. I started shipping in February, but it is still detained. Moreover, the finance department asked us to settle all the freight. If we don’t, the goods will be detained, so most people have settled the freight. In the past, the fees were not so tight. Generally, the freight was paid more than ten days after the shipment. This time, they are urging us every day. The goods that are detained are both in China and at the destination port. Mine are basically at the destination port, and there are also overseas warehouses.

We are now negotiating with the shipping company and have coordinated with the government. We are still negotiating. "

"There are more than 300 victims now, and the total amount is just over 13 million. *** owes more than 12 million, so he wants us to pay him back, and there is still profit." The seller was furious: "*** is now talking and laughing, and he can even smoke with a smile, we can't do anything to him."

(The seller sent a screenshot of the on-site video. The second from the left is the owner of the freight forwarding company)

The seller in question sent me a video of the communication. The freight forwarding company boss was talking and laughing while explaining the situation to the sellers present. In sharp contrast, the sellers in question all looked solemn. It is difficult to tell whether the boss was in a good mood and calm, or whether he did not care much about the crisis.

The editor contacted the logistics company's public phone number, but heard the call was hung up after the inquiry; the seller gave the editor's boss's phone number, but no one answered.

Is it the seller who has to pay for this unexpected disaster?

Is receiving goods at a low price the root of the problem, or are you being led by others ?

Many sellers and cross-border logistics peers said that the incident was caused by receiving goods at low prices, and believed that receiving goods at low prices was the root cause. This point of criticism caused public opinion to continue to ferment. In fact, many victimized sellers said that this logistics company received goods at normal market prices, and the whole incident was likely to be blamed on the low price and was led by the rhythm.

After the incident, many logistics colleagues forwarded the topic of the incident and the general content was nothing more than the following:

1. First, express your opinion on the incident: hundreds of millions of dollars worth of goods, two rights protection groups of several hundred people, many sellers have worked for nothing for a year or even several years;

2. Point out the disadvantages of low prices: Freight forwarding is a red ocean industry. If you want to carve out a niche by offering low prices or chase after low prices, you may often be swallowed up by low prices.

3. Emphasize your professional ethics: The channel products of freight forwarding are also multi-dimensional products of timeliness, price, and service. Only with appropriate profits can we provide safe and high-quality services.

Why is low price the scapegoat? Why does low price cause such a big splash? Because low price has always been a "rotten apple" in the competition of the logistics industry .

At present, the cross-border logistics industry is in chaos. Some freight forwarding companies only know how to lower prices and attract sellers with low prices, but many people fall for this trick. As a result, the freight forwarding companies are deserted after the incident, and the sellers can only defend their rights in various ways and complain about the freight forwarding scams everywhere.

How low can logistics prices go? The editor learned some information from several industry logistics professionals. Taking sea freight as an example, the basic market price of a certain Xinghaipai is 9.5-11.5 yuan per kilogram (fluctuating with the market industry), and the cost of the dealer freight forwarder is basically around 9-9.5 yuan. If the price is lower than this, the freight forwarder will lose money.

In order to attract customers, some small freight forwarding companies accept goods at a price 1-2 yuan per kilogram lower than the cost price, that is, 7-8.5 yuan per kilogram. Some freight forwarders with no bottom line accept goods at a price of just over 6 yuan, which is about 30% lower than the cost price. It is definitely tempting for the sellers, and many people are cheated by the price.

A freight forwarder said that the unit price of ocean freight is already low, and the difference of one yuan per kilogram is already a big factor. What's more, it is 30% lower than the market price ? Freight forwarders who receive goods at low prices do not make money. Are they doing charity? It's impossible!

At present, there is a very strange phenomenon in the logistics market. The larger the company, the higher the price. In theory, the resources of large companies are definitely better than those of small companies, but why can small companies offer low prices? Because they can run away at any time.

As one seller said, there have been a lot of small logistics companies in Shenzhen in the past two years, and at the same time, many small companies have gone bankrupt. These bankrupt small companies have reopened with a new sign.

On the other hand, since last year, due to the overseas epidemic, the logistics prices in Europe and the United States have been pushed up across the board. There have been incidents such as lack of containers and cabinets, and inability to book space. Some unscrupulous freight forwarders have switched the channels of goods to profit from it, causing some people to flock to the cross-border logistics industry. The mixed market, coupled with some unprofessional freight forwarders, has made this industry stink.

In the end, the money was taken away by the freight forwarder, and the cross-border sellers who shipped the goods had to pay the bill with tears. Therefore, sellers must carefully select when choosing a logistics company.

How can sellers avoid pitfalls when choosing logistics companies ?

The editor consulted logistics professionals and sellers in the industry. When choosing a logistics company, sellers are advised to pay attention to the following points:

1. Don’t blindly pursue low prices. No one will do a business that loses money. The wool comes from the sheep. If the channel is lower than the market price, you should consider it carefully;

2. If the goods are of high value, it is best to cooperate with a large or well-known logistics company. The monk may run away, but the temple cannot;

3. Before delivery, clearly understand the possible problems and discuss the responsibilities;

4. Consider purchasing logistics transportation insurance for some important goods, which can compensate for loss and delay;

5. When choosing a logistics provider, you must understand the company’s size, brand, operating conditions (Qichacha), risk resistance, and financial strength .

For sellers, expensive shipping has its advantages, while cheap shipping has its risks. The risk is your own, so you must carefully investigate and choose with caution.

Freight forwarding, running away