Yodel handled a record breaking 5,098,559 parcels between Thursday 26th November and Wednesday 2nd December, which includes Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
 
Service levels throughout the period were the highest on record for 2015 despite it being the busiest week the company has ever faced. As a result, customer satisfaction has remained high with 86 per cent of online shoppers saying they had a positive delivery experience. During the same week in 2014 this figure dipped as low as 73 per cent.
 
One of the key factors in delivering great customer experience was Yodel’s close partnerships with clients. The carrier and retailers agreed in advance the number of parcels that would be accepted into the delivery network each day. It also placed limits on next day delivery capacity and spread handling and deliveries over the course of a week – including Sunday 29th November – between Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
 
Yodel has invested heavily in its operations in the last 12 months. £30 million has been spent to improve efficiency and capacity, which saw the company introduce a brand new website, mechanical handling systems, sorting equipment, training, a larger fleet and new sites. This was in addition to 7,000 new recruits.
 
Dick Stead, Yodel’s executive chairman, said; “We wanted this year’s festive peak to start smoothly and it undoubtedly has. Everyone’s worked incredibly hard to deliver for our clients and for the consumers who shopped online. Firmly agreeing volumes with retailers in advance of Black Friday and Cyber Monday was the right thing to do. We only accepted what we were equipped to deliver, which means everyone from staff to shoppers are happy.
 
“But we’re not complacent. We still have just over two weeks to go until Christmas and are expecting high parcel volumes to continue. We’ll be battling snow, high winds, transport disruption and more to make our deliveries. It’s down to the incredibly hard work of our teams and our preparation that we’re able to do this.”