Whether your peak 2024 went well or not so well, there’s always room for improvement to make your business as successful as it can be, particularly during the busiest time of the year.
There are many ways to enhance your supply chain to perform optimally during peak, here are our expert’s top tips:
- Accurate forecasting – your forecasts for your peak order volumes need to be honest and accurate, ideally based on data from previous peaks, the current year’s performance so far, and interest in your brand and products. A lot of brands don’t have this or find it difficult to produce – work with your 3PL to get their view. They should be working with other clients in your sector and be able to use previous experience to help complete an accurate forecast. This allows you to plan seamlessly for things such as extra packaging, scheduled training of additional team members and extra trailer collections to support your increase in orders.
- Transparency – Communication about any changes in orders or performance during peak is just as crucial as planning, as it allows us to adapt to any situations that may arise for you and continue to fulfil your orders. Keep talking leading up to the period – and as your promotional calendar reacts, keep your 3PL up to date. Your 3PL should never be there to restrict what you do, but instead be agile to handle the changes your business needs to make to have the best peak possible.
- Planning and testing – If you’re taking on a new customer partner or platform, make sure you’ve meticulously prepared for all requirements – whether paperwork, presentation and booking in, or processing data files and formats – to ensure that when peak hits, nothing is hitting the fan.
- Ensure you choose the right 3PL – The right 3PL can enhance your business’ success year-round, not just at peak. However, when up to 90% of annual sales can be done in just 2 months of the year, you need your 3PL to be prepared. The right 3PL will have a great relationship with your brand, enabling you to be transparent with them about any challenges you may be facing. They will also ensure they know your brand and customers inside out, to help you with forecasting and predictions. A data-driven 3PL will also perform better at peak – analysing how their previous peak period went, and learning from this data means they can continuously improve their performance for your business.
Peak at Staci this year was a major success, we had great forecasts from our clients, making planning a breeze. Our additional resources were brought in early, so everything was prepared in advance. We had record despatch days for the majority of our D2C clients, with 26,000 orders and 87,000 items despatched in just one day.
If you’re in need of a trustworthy, high-performing logistics partner for peak 2025, get in touch today so we can get planning together.