The biggest challenge for the logistics sector this Christmas will be to avoid supply chain collapse in an increasingly unstable and volatile online market. Three key factors will make this possible.

Currently, 70% of the Spanish population is already shopping online and this figure is growing steadily. The retail sector is preparing in advance to face a season full of peaks in demand: Christmas.

In fact, to understand the surge in orders leading up to the holidays, last December 2020 online sales soared 58% higher than usual according to Salesforce's Holiday Shopping Report (https://www.salesforce.com/resources/retail/holiday-readiness/).

Last Black Friday was a litmus test for many e-retailers. Now, with the beginning of December, retailers are beginning to make greater efforts to optimize and streamline their resources.

During the month of November, 67% of Spanish consumers buy their Christmas gifts, according to the latest global study "Consumer Trends at Christmas" (https://www.ebayinc.com/stories/press-room/es/seg%C3%BAn-el-estudio-global-tendencias-de-consumo-en-navidad-de-ebay/). Therefore, this is a key period for the logistics and transportation sector to prepare their supply chains.

What issues are retailers facing this year's holiday season?

Delays along the supply chain, coupled with rising freight rates, are two of the issues that are causing the most headaches for the retail sector. In less than a year, ocean freight rates have increased by between 200 and 300 euros, affecting businesses and consumers.

This context has forced retailers to restructure and increase the final price of their products, affecting the important up to 40%. Despite the Spanish employers' association's call for calm, companies are facing an unpredictable and increasingly volatile scenario.

Keys for the logistics and transportation industry to make it through the Christmas season

Some of the points that will prevent the collapse of the supply chain during the holidays include the following:

1. Implement centralized and real-time inventory management.

The ability to optimize all inventory operations is essential today. In addition, enabling ways of working, such as the aisle, are essential to ensure retailers' omnichannel success.

Achieving a global vision of the stock levels of each store, warehouse or distribution center in real time is possible through a system that centralizes and unifies the management of inventories and warehouses in the cloud.

Logistics and transportation need to drink from technological innovations such as this one to keep up with the demands of users and the current context.

Integrate an omnichannel collection system.

E-commerce is experiencing exponential growth, however, it continues to need the physical store as a complement. This is because users demand to have all the possibilities at their fingertips, i.e.: buy online, receive the package at home or pick it up in store.

Due to this transformation that the consumer is undergoing, online purchasing models such as Ship from Store or Click&Collect have become popular. This solution is good news for the sector, making it more flexible and lowering costs.

3. Leverage data to understand the user and the supply chain.

Data is the new gold of the 21st century. Information, both from the user and from the supply chain itself, can be a fundamental ally to study the behavior of the sector and improve our decision making.

Supply Chain 4.0 offers companies a wealth of data that, when analyzed, can pinpoint patterns or inefficiencies. Making use of information to improve efficiency and flexibility will help companies in the sector to cope with the huge holiday demand.

In short, the sector will have to keep up with an increasingly demanding and omnichannel user, especially at this time of year. Through these three points, logistics and transportation will make it possible for everyone to receive their gifts on time.