Pre ordering is as old as the hills.
The difference is retailers do it. The price we pay has lots of add ons but the retailer takes the risk. Retailers in the UK rarely ask for the money up front when pre ordering and the customer can cancel the pre ordered goods. In the UK there are many postal companies Yodel,Parcelforce, UBS, DPD, etc and retailers can choose those that meet their needs. Getting stuff from halfway round the world is always going to be costly and long distance rather than internal is likely to be out of the control of the sender. Old systems are not bad nor are new ones but crowdfunding or its resurgence was particularly aimed at products with short and reasonably predictable lead times eg specialist game add ons or DVDs. Additionally the normal distribution channels (manufacturer>importer> wholesaler>retailer) for these products were often non existent. Sadly "circumnavigation" has led to retailers/wholesalers reducing their stock etc and opting for sure fire movers (big sellers). The sure fire movers may be RC helicopters or drones. Consumption patterns are often fragile (rob Peter and pay Paul)in a niche area like plastic model figures.