Yodel says it delivered a record number of parcels over the peak Christmas period, up 37.4% year-on-year between November 15th and January 2nd.
The company says it experienced a surge in everyday premium items passing through its network as families settled in for a Christmas at home due to lockdown. Increased demand for alcohol and fresh food in particular made a significant contribution to Yodel’s record year, with volumes in the category up by 89% with 3.2 million parcels delivered.
Meanwhile, the latest figures from Kantar show take-home grocery sales rose by 11.4% during the 12 weeks to 27 December 2020, a period spanning both the November national lockdown and Christmas.
December was the busiest month ever for British supermarkets as tightening restrictions and the closure of restaurants, bars and cafés across most of the country meant shoppers spent £11.7 billion on take-home groceries in the past four weeks alone.
Mike Hancox, Chief Executive Officer at Yodel, said: “The run-up to Christmas is always the busiest period for us but this was by far the most intense. “Christmas was different for everyone this year and we saw consumers looking to capitalise on the benefits of doorstep delivery. Food and drink ecommerce in particular was a key driver over the Christmas period.
“The whole year for us has been defined by the unprecedented numbers of parcels being delivered. We were operating at ‘2019 Peak’ levels from March through to November, with volumes up 20% compared to a ‘normal’ year.
“We operate a flexible network and understand the importance of ensuring that delicate goods are handled with care and delivered on time, especially over Christmas. Our state-of-the-art handling facilities and our specially trained colleagues hopefully helped consumers to have something to smile about this Christmas.”
