As we have moved into November the ramp-up to peak has well and truly begun. Black Friday is just over two weeks away and there are only seven weekends left until Christmas!
And so the Christmas tv adverts have begun. Amongst the launches in the last week has been the new campaign from Argos, which has once again chosen to make delivery the star. The idea of the ad being that the company’s various delivery options can save the day even when supposedly fool-proof plans go awry.
It’s a powerful message as retailers prepare for peak and for those who can deliver on the delivery promise is a key differentiator in success.
Amongst those companies gearing up to help on the delivery front is the Royal Mail. The company has revealed the reopening of six additional parcel sort centres to help with peak, as well as the recruitment of 2,700 temporary workers for the site. It’s the eighth consecutive year the temporary centres have opened.
One popular delivery option in particular at peak is click and collect. New research from HubBox suggests that shoppers that choose click and collect it as an option can spend up to 14% more than when they choose home delivery.
For shoppers planning their Christmas party wardrobes the news that Amazon has now launched Prime Wardrobe in the UK will be welcomed. The try before you buy service allows customers to order three to eight items with no upfront charge and only pay for what they keep. It’s the latest in a number of such schemes aimed at boosting customer spend and ensuring they are satisfied on first order and reducing the likelihood of multiple orders and returns.
Talking of returns we have an overview of a recent eDelivery returns webinar with CML. Returns, fact or friction looked at shopper expectations of returns, why people return and what can be done to manage and reduce returns volumes.
In Milton Keynes Starship Technologies, which has been running a number of autonomous delivery vehicle trials, has launched what it claims is a world first delivery service to ship packages on the last mile using autonomous vehicles. Goods are shipped from a local facility close to the customer’s home. Customers are then able to choose a time for one of the robots to deliver to a location of their choice.
Fashion retailer Superdry has revealed details of a consolidation of its logistics IT systems with Consignor.
Finally, we have news of new recruits and responsibilities for staff at both ArrowXL and Whistl.
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