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Special sales days such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday, as well as holidays such as Christmas and Easter, pose complex challenges not only for retailers and suppliers, but also for logistics service providers. Precise organization, forward-looking personnel planning, and smoothly functioning processes are crucial for logistics at Christmas. But how can thousands of online orders and store deliveries be processed on time and without errors during such a busy period?
Preparations are in full swing at the logistics center. The last three weeks before Christmas mark the crucial peak season for Christmas logistics – a period in which order volumes more than double and significantly more personnel resources are required than the annual average. A Rhenus warehouse serves as the central distribution center for a well-known bookseller with branches in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. In addition to traditional branch deliveries, the center also supports omnichannel business – for example, when customers order books online for pickup at the branch. The entire shipping process for online orders is also handled at this location.
Several hundred thousand items and tens of thousands of shipping units leave the warehouse every day – controlled by automated systems, lean processes, and a powerful IT infrastructure.
This trend can also be observed in transportation: In road freight transport, additional resources must be planned so that last-mile delivery or long-distance transport runs smoothly during this period.
An important aspect of personnel and resource planning is changing customer behavior: Consumers are increasingly starting their Christmas shopping earlier. In Spain, almost half of consumers are getting started early, with one in five even earlier than last year.2 In Germany, most purchases are made in November or early December3, nevertheless, sufficient quantities must also be available for last-minute shoppers on 24 December. This extends the period during which high product availability and fast delivery times must be guaranteed. In addition, shopping events such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday further increase demand in the run-up to Christmas. Companies must therefore plan their logistics at Christmas several weeks in advance to cover all important shopping moments.
Logistics is no longer defined by a single peak, but by a sustained period of high activity that requires careful coordination to avoid bottlenecks in transport and distribution.
At the same time, customers are taking more time to compare different options. Their decisions are more deliberate and less impulsive, forcing retailers to maintain service quality over a longer period of time rather than relying on a concentrated surge. The challenge is no longer to cope with a sudden surge, but to maintain a consistently high level of logistics performance from October to the end of December while ensuring the same level of efficiency.
A Deloitte study on the 2025 holiday season shows that more than half of consumers find Christmas shopping stressful, and more than a third cite delivery delays as the main reason for their frustration. Deloitte cites curated gift boxes and wish lists as examples of tools retailers can use to support their shoppers.4
Delivery reliability has therefore become a cornerstone of the customer experience. Meeting promised delivery dates builds trust and loyalty, especially at this time of year.
To cope with the rush, the logistics center switches from two to three shifts during the peak season. Orders are processed around the clock six days a week. Stores have until the evening before to place their orders, which are then delivered the next day. Even on December 24, deliveries still reach the stores in time to enable sales until closing time.Preparations for this demanding phase begin well in advance – often more than a year beforehand. In addition to fine-tuning existing processes, the technical infrastructure is also constantly being developed to ensure that logistics for Christmas run smoothly and to support employees. New conveyor technology, additional automation solutions, or expansions in the warehouse structure must be planned and implemented in good time – a decisive success factor given the sometimes long delivery times.
A significant step is the use of autonomous robots, which will support the picking process in the future. The goal is to increase productivity while significantly reducing walking distances for employees. The robots move fully automatically through the warehouse, drive directly to the pickers, and display on a tablet which item from which shelf is to be picked. In addition, they provide support through integrated scanning, label printing, and consideration of country-specific price labels.
Another advantage is that, since no industrial trucks are required, targeted picking training is sufficient instead of time-consuming forklift training. Once picking is complete, the robots transport the goods to the automated conveyor system, which forwards them directly to the sorter in the goods issue area.
In addition to technical infrastructure, a forward-looking personnel strategy remains a key success factor in logistics for Christmas. When order volumes increase, sufficient trained seasonal staff must already be available. That is why personnel planning begins as early as summer—including targeted recruiting measures and attractive working conditions.
An experienced onboarding team, multilingual training, shuttle services and even housing are all part of the concept for integrating new employees quickly and sustainably.
The forecast for expected business development is made at the beginning of the year. Ongoing data analysis helps to respond quickly to market changes. Even though the relationship between brick-and-mortar and online business has changed, digital business remains at a high level and places special demands on the flexibility of processes and personnel.
At the beginning of January, the volume of orders flattens out again—but the work is not over yet. This is followed by structured returns processing, in which returns are checked, recorded, and reintegrated into the goods cycle. Here, too, efficiency is required to keep inventory levels up to date and costs low.
How an experienced logistics provider can support
Counteracting seasonal fluctuations and determining the right demand throughout the year is a masterful task. Planning logistics at Christmas is no longer just a purely operational task, but has developed into a strategic decision within logistics management in retail.
“Every year, the peak season starts earlier, and foresight is the key to success. Those who plan well in advance are best placed to ensure stable service,” says Andreu Gutiérrez, Country Sales Director Road, Rhenus Group in Spain.
However, foresight doesn't just mean bringing forward deadlines. It means analyzing demand early on, coordinating teams and adjusting routes and warehouses so that everything fits together. That's the key to the campaign's success.
In times of high demand, logistics runs smoothly – when technology, personnel and processes are coordinated. With forward planning, automated systems, and a strong team, it is possible to ensure on-time deliveries even under high pressure – for end customers, stores, and online shops alike. An experienced logistics service provider also supports the other steps in the supply chain during seasonal fluctuations, for example through increased personnel planning and smart route planning in road freight transport.
Learn how to make it resilient to fluctuating demand and take retail logistics to the next level.
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