After Major Shipping companies enforce the vape mail ban, X Delivery aspires to be the logistical solution to the difficulties of mailing PACT Act-compliant vaping goods in the United States.
Preventing Vape Mail Ban
When the shipping opportunities were limited, X Delivery stepped up to the plate. The Preventing Online Sales of E-Cigarettes to Children Act, which was buried inside the omnibus spending bill passed at the end of 2021, prohibits the USPS from delivering nicotine or cannabis vapor products directly to consumers by including electronic nicotine-delivery systems (ENDS) as well as cannabis products under 2009 Preventing All Cigarette Trafficking Act or PACT Act.
Vaping goods will no longer be shipped by any of the main shipping companies:
NOTE: The enforcement of the vape shipping ban has been delayed by major carriers.
The online demand for vape goods seemed to have come to an abrupt halt while we await the final implementation of the vape mail ban. In steps X Delivery. A remedy was proposed by the shipping company with a simple name. Although there is still space for expansion and hiring more drivers to distribute vaping goods to more zip codes, X Delivery has given a promise to many online vapor retailers.
X Delivery Logistics & Conditions
Shipping vapor materials is problematic due to the PACT Act's provisions. X Delivery's chief logistics officer, Paul Vinuelas, claims that the firm will meet any of the PACT Act's conditions, including checking the purchaser's age and securing the adult's signature on any vape-related delivery. According to Vinuelas, all packets containing vaping items must be under 10 pounds, and all shipped shipments must have a sticker indicating that the contents include a “tobacco” substance, as well as a note warning the purchaser that taxes are due on the order.
Vape mail requirements for businesses:
- Under 10lbs of vape gear
- Tobacco box labels
Visit X Deliver Official Website to learn more about this alternative vape shipment method.
Requirement to Collect Signatures
“Every aspect of shipping has its own set of difficulties. The fact that major national carriers have decided to opted out of vape shipping demonstrates their preference for the drop-and-run distribution model. The vaping mail ban is not a ban against vapes, just restrictions against the way vape gear can be delivered. “They aren't trusting in their abilities to sell to someone who is 21 or older,” Vinuelas says. “This is where X Delivery comes in, we have a network of committed people who take the PACT Act seriously. We remain committed to ensuring enforcement and preventing the sale of these drugs to minors. We believe it is worth the extra work to conduct our deliveries and test them for PACT Act compliance.”
X Delivery Shipping Coverage Map
X Delivery has the potential to ship goods to customers across the United States, and will currently deliver smoking products to around 90% of the population. According to Vinuelas, the organization is aiming to expand its coverage to reach the whole world as soon as possible. The company claims that it can distribute vape mail in less than 2 days.
Contacting Vapor Consumers
“We ask our last-mile distribution partners to verify IDs and collect adult signatures. From the view of the end-customer, buying from an online merchant who ships via X Delivery is the same as ordering from an online merchant who ships from a well-known shipping carrier. From the time your vape mail order is put before it is delivered, you also can get real-time monitoring updates,” says Vinuelas. “We go a little deeper and collaborate to contact consumers when their order is on its way so that they can be home to collect it.”
High Volume of Vape Deliveries
CEO Chris Guggenheim, who has a long history in the film and eCommerce technology sectors, founded X Delivery. As a result of these encounters, Guggenheim decided to engage in commerce-oriented technologies and open “X.” X Delivery is driven by the technology firm X, and there will be further services under the X umbrella in the future. In 2019, his highest-volume clients requested assistance in resolving delivery-related issues. Guggenheim launched X Delivery, a high-tech national shipping carrier, in early 2020, and the technology giant quickly began funding it. X Delivery shipped more than 10 million parcels in just six months, with an average vape mail delivery period of two days around the country. In late 2020, the company started shipping vaping goods.
Vape Company Collaboration
“We have collaborated with vape companies over the last six months to create a fully compliant shipping carrier service using our established technologies and logistics capabilities,” Vinuelas said. “We recognize the gravity of these residential deliveries, and our attempts to comply with local, state, and federal regulations have been exhaustive but successful.”
According to Vinuelas, the experience acquired from running X helped Guggenheim addresses a number of retail problems for merchants. “When we started piloting our service in 2019, we found that the best way to serve high-growth D2C (direct-to-consumer) e-commerce companies long term was to develop infrastructure from the ground up,” he added. “When we talk about the importance of X Delivery, we're talking about improving consumer service, revenue conversion, and allowing retailers to get the most out of one warehouse.”
A Modern Approach in Shipping logistics
The official motto of X Delivery is “Reimagine Delivery.” Fix logistics is another unofficial slogan for X Delivery. According to the company's website, xdelivery.ai, the aim of X Delivery is to “simplify vape mail delivery through technology, reliability, speed, and price.” According to Vinuelas, the firm has created a modern approach to logistics by linking in-motion supply chain properties, such as empty warehouses and local distribution systems, to new technologies.
New Cost of Receiving Vape Mail
“Most e-commerce retailers would be unable to correctly estimate the expense of shipping a package. Many e-commerce merchants mistakenly believe that operating their business out of several warehouses would enable them to benefit from quicker delivery and lower costs. This isn't real, because it's what's broken,” Vinuelas says. “Shipping carriers must recognize that all consumers can receive the same level of service regardless of whether they travel from or to in the United States. In today's industry, this is our aim. I'll just note that figuring out how much it would cost a retailer to ship in the United States shouldn't require a Ph.D. Extra costs, such as diesel surcharges and Covid-19 fees, must be eliminated by shipping carriers. That has been accomplished.” ~Vinuelas, Paul
Service Integration & Ship Protocols
To help streamline its vape mail shipping process, X Delivery uses an application programming interface (API). An API is a series of protocols that allow the backends of apps and applications to communicate with each other over the internet in order to sync data in real-time through different platforms.
One software (application A) may “call” another program (application B) to access its data or functionalities, according to the X Delivery website. Users can view data from application A through the GUI of application B, for example, without having to manually move data from one program to another. API integrations enable users to integrate operations through multiple digital applications, resulting in a smooth and instantaneous flow of data.
Platform Technology
According to the website, “APIs allow businesses to embed delivery features directly into their device or other platforms so they can customize the software to increase reliability and extend distribution capacities while minimizing errors and delays associated with manual data transfer.” “Our API is the backbone of logistics management in the future. By using in-motion supply chain assets to offer you the best shipping solutions available in real-time, we help you optimize package distribution through technology, reliability, speed, and price.”
X Delivery for Small Vape Companies
Currently, X Delivery only ships with vape businesses that have consumers who order at least 500 vape mail packages a day from a single facility, with a 10-pound weight limit. However, Vinuelas claims that the company is aiming to lower the minimum package requirement. “We're working hard to make our service available to smaller vapor businesses,” he added. “For the time being, we've worked with a few strategically picked logistics agencies to assist (smaller) businesses in connecting to the X Delivery network.”
Increased Shipping Costs & Adult Signatures
Vape mail shipping with X Distribution would be marginally more costly than shipping with the big-name delivery systems, but not significantly more expensive than shipping with USPS with adult signature set. For X Delivery, a 1-pound shipment costs around $6–$7, based on the number of parcels delivered, and a 10-pound package costs around $10–$11. According to Vinuelas, these costs will decline as the vapor network expands and more businesses begin shipping via X Delivery.
X Logistics is committed to improving delivery paths in the future. Vapor businesses who join the X Distribution team gain access to a variety of delivery services from around the world.
Direct to Consumer Vapes
“They recognize that nothing we say can gain confidence more effectively than performance. For our partners and their end customers, we are fully transparent. We also make it easy for others to get a feel for us. When you try us, you'll see how logistics can be done, and you'll never want to go back to the old way,” Vinuelas says. “Our long-term aim is to be the leading shipping carrier for direct-to-consumer eCommerce businesses. Vape and e-cigarette retailers tend to work with customers who are well-versed in the applicable laws and would be a successful match. The partner is us.”
