Black Friday is fast becoming one of the busiest times of year after Christmas, for retailers and distribution companies alike.
A holiday that has been a part of American history for decades and marks the start of Thanksgiving, has certainly grown in popularity in the UK too over the past few years, with people grabbing a bargain and stockpiling gifts for Christmas.
Many high street and independent retailers had to close during the Covid-19 pandemic, creating a boom for eCommerce businesses* that isn’t set to slow down any time soon, especially as consumers are still cautious about visiting shopping centres and being amongst the hustle and bustle of busy stores.
Statistics show that UK shoppers spent around £6million* on Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals, which is a fantastic boost for retailers and the economy, but not necessarily for distributors and courier companies.
Helen Davey at City Transport Solutions explains:
“While the eCommerce boost from Covid is great for the high street and the economy it’s coincided with a reduction in new vehicle production, making it near-on impossible to supply the number of vehicles needed to distribute goods to customers.
With most UK distribution companies struggling to supply additional vehicles, CTS has been tasked to source an additional 500 vehicles for a major client in the countdown to Black Friday. As CTS have long established strong supplier relationships, we have been able to provide vehicles for all our distribution and courier companies, but it’s not getting any easier as demand continues to outweigh supply.”
“Over the years we’ve become a reliable resource for many global brands and UK businesses and understand that building solid relationships is vital to the future of our business. Without our contacts and connections we wouldn’t be in the position we’re in today.”
Black Friday takes place on Friday 26th November this year and retailers are expecting consumer spend to be at an all-time high this year***
For more information about CTS and the work that we do, contact Helen helend@citytransportsolutions.co.uk or call 01442 434650
*https://www.emarketer.com/content/uk-ecommerce-forecast-2021
**https://www.finder.com/uk/black-friday-statistics
***https://grin.co/blog/black-friday-buying-trends-this-holiday-season/
