The festive season is a challenging period for businesses and logistics alike. Many UK companies close for up to two weeks over Christmas. As your freight forwarding partner, we want to help you plan your supply chain so your goods arrive on time — and your business avoids unnecessary costs.
Shipping to arrive early
One common approach is to ship goods, so they arrive at your warehouse 2+ weeks before your Christmas closure. This gives you peace of mind, ensures stock is on hand for any final orders, and allows time to manage inventory before the festive shutdown.
However, early shipping comes with risks:
- Delays on the vessel or at customs: Even though you plan for early arrival, vessels can be delayed by 1–3 weeks, particularly in December when ports are busy.
- Additional storage costs: If your cargo arrives early, additional warehousing or demurrage charges will be billed to your account.
Shipping Late: Arriving Closer to Christmas
Some businesses prefer to ship later, aiming for arrival in late December to avoid paying for extra storage or tying up warehouse space. While this can reduce early handling costs, it introduces different risks:
- Potential delays of 1–3 weeks: Vessels can be delayed, and customs or port congestion can slow things further.
- Risk of missing deadlines: Late shipping may result in cargo arriving after your Christmas shutdown, meaning stock isn’t available when you need it — and there may be no way to recover lost sales.
Collaborate with CCT to plan
The key to managing Christmas logistics successfully is early and proactive planning. Here’s how we help:
- Route and vessel advice: We can recommend the best carriers, shipping lines, and schedules based on your delivery deadlines.
- Risk management: We provide guidance on early vs. late shipping, potential delays, and cost implications.
- Customised solutions: From consolidation options to express shipping alternatives, we can tailor a plan that balances timing, cost, and risk.
Steps you can take to help your supply chain.
- Confirm your warehouse closure dates and inventory needs for the festive period.
- Discuss shipment options with us as early as possible — ideally by October/early November.
- Decide whether early arrival (with potential storage costs) or late arrival (with potential delay risk) suits your business.
- Book shipments with clear deadlines and contingency plans.
- Keep communication lines open with us to manage any unexpected changes in real-time.
Our team continues to monitor the situation closely across key Far East and European trade lanes. Any questions? Please contact us via email on customerservice@cctworldwideltd.com or by phone on +44 (0) 3300 434 542