Holiday Freight and the Race Up to Christmas
Starting Thanksgiving Day and running all the way up through December 16 is considered the absolute busiest time of the year for retailers. Holiday deals—both in-store and online—herald the season of presents and gift giving, and people spend more than an estimated $1 trillion on everything from the newest gadgets to clothing and entertainment. And while this all adds up to presents under the tree, there’s also a nightmare of logistics that needs to occur to ensure your gifts arrive with plenty of time to spare.
Trucking companies in Aurora, CO are working double- and triple-time throughout the holiday season, ensuring consumers are able to get what they’re looking for in the days before Christmas.
Keeping Up with Demand
What happens when you go to the store looking for a specific present and it’s not in stock? Chances are, you’ll go home and search for it online. You don’t have time to wait for a re-stock!
For retailers, this means losing out on crucial holiday sales. For this reason, retailers often raise their demand and expectations during the holiday season: requesting more frequent deliveries that are larger and more diverse. For freight companies, this means a massive increase in workload.
And that’s just to keep products on shelves! When consumers shop online, products are still being moved from one destination to another. In order to get your must-have gift from the warehouse to your doorstep, there are even more logistical considerations to be made. Here again, the demand that trucking companies in Aurora, CO face is heightened.
Answering the Call
There are a few ways freight companies deal with the massive influx of demand during the holiday season.
First, they can staff more drivers and utilize hot shot truckers for smaller deliveries and LTL freight situations. This enables companies to continue focusing on their larger, more regular accounts and coordinating them appropriately, without being hampered by minor details.
Second, freight companies will often increase their delivery hours to accommodate a growing schedule, while also coordinating logistics around this larger timetable. For example, if a company stops delivering after 6pm regularly, they may extend delivery hours to 10pm to accommodate two extra stops, inserting those stops into a route where they make sense.
Finally, responding to demand can mean conforming delivery schedules around the needs of major clientele. If Big Box Retailer A needs deliveries at 6am and 6pm daily, a freight company may schedule dedicated drivers to this specific account or route. It ensures mistakes are minimized and schedules are met.
Patience Is the Key
Ultimately, you’re likely to get your presents well in advance of the December 24 and 25 holidays. This is all thanks to the careful consideration and planning done by freight providers.
By working harder and smarter this holiday season, trucking companies in Aurora, CO become the backbone for success in a fast-moving, high-volume retail environment. Shelves stay stocked, presents get bought and people are happy, thanks in large part to the men and women behind the wheel of freight trucks.
