Shocking Holiday Shipping Statistics

U.S. e-commerce revenue is about $423.3 billion and is steadily climbing. Whether it\’s full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), or parcel, carriers are being forced to adjust to changes in the retail industry. However, it seems as though the holiday season is easily the busiest of the entire year due to the increased convenience that large online shopping retailers provide. In fact, the National Retail Federation predicted that online sales would increase as much as 10% last holiday season, compared to 2015, and it\’s likely that this year will be even bigger! Check out some more shocking holiday shipping statistics below.

Volume Increase
It isn\’t just the number of sales or packages that are increasing — it\’s the sheer volume of them all. In fact, UPS estimated a 14% increase in package volume last year, with FedEx not far behind at 10%. Again, this spike is heavily fueled by the steady increase in online sales made during the holiday season.

Procrastinating Shoppers
It\’s no secret that many people wait a bit longer than they should to do their holiday shopping, and it certainly shows. FedEx predicts that the four Mondays prior to Christmas to be some of the company\’s busiest days in history. UPS, on the other hand, is dealing with similar magnitude: the company expects 13 out of a total of 21 holiday delivery days to exceed a whopping 30 million packages.

These trends are largely why UPS opened 15 new or expanded hub facilities across the entire United States. The company also hired about 95,000 seasonal workers and has been making other efforts to ensure customers get their packages on time. In total, an estimated 1.07 billion packages were anticipated to be handled by both UPS and FedEx combined last year. That\’s enough for more than three packages for each U.S. citizen!

So…What Can Your Company Do?
If you\’re struggling to keep up with the demands of your chaotic freight management schedule, investing in one of the many types of transportation broker software can help your company optimize business operations without missing a beat.

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the value of freight moved is expected to increase from $882 per ton in 2007 to $1,377 per ton in 2040. If you feel as though your company could benefit from the strategic implementation of a freight management solution, contact 3PL Systems for more information about how to get started.