Lara GuevaraSupply Chain expert (Product and Service)

You Might Be Paying For Peak Pricing

22 May 2026 · 1 min

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1:10

In this short advisory, Lara Guevara warns shippers that freight rates are dynamic and can quickly become outdated if not actively managed. She explains that rates fluctuate with volume, lane, season, and carrier capacity, citing the recent Red Sea disruption as an example of a market shock that caused rates to spike and later stabilize. Guevara points out that many brands are still locked into rates set during the peak, effectively paying peak pricing even as the market normalizes. She contrasts this with the most organized shippers, who track annual lane volume, keep data ready, and renegotiate at least annually, often securing better rates than larger, less disciplined brands. The piece concludes with a prompt to consider the five key questions that can unlock a better rate today, urging viewers to assess when they last renegotiated and to adopt a proactive, data‑driven approach to freight contracting.

Chapters

Your freight broker gave you a rate. You said okay. That was 14 months ago. Nobody has touched it since. Here's the problem: freight rates are not like rent. They do not stay fixed until you negotiate. They move constantly based on volume, lane, season, and carrier capacities. When the Red Sea disruption peaked, rates spiked. Most brands locked in or just paid spot. Now some lanes have stabilized. Some carriers are even beginning to test Red Sea transits again. The market shifted in both directions, and if your rate was set at the top, you are still paying peak pricing on a market that has moved. The brands paying the best rates right now are not the biggest brands. They're the most organized ones. They know their annual volume by lane. They have the data ready when they call, they go out to bid at least once a year. When did you last actively renegotiate your rate? If the answer is when we started, that is your answer. Tomorrow, the 5 questions that unlock a better rate today.