Postal hike doesn’t stop catalogers from stuffing mailboxes

By DAVID SHARP
Associated Press

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A big postal rate increase over the summer hasn’t stopped catalog retailers from stuffing mailboxes this holiday season. The U.S. Postal Service says more than 300 million catalogs flooded into people’s mailboxes last month and that overall the number of catalogs has grown 12% over last year. The boost continues a positive trend for catalogers who’re defying those who predicted their demise in a digital world. Nonetheless, catalogs remain expensive to print and mail. The Postal Service gave a one-two punch to the industry this year with a 3% postage increase in January followed by an additional increase of nearly 9% in August.