Hallelujah! Chances are you received everything you ordered online in time for Christmas.
Unlike last year, no major hiccups were reported this holiday, with very few packages arriving late, according to multiple studies.
As few as 7 percent of all packages missed Christmas, according to a survey of 160 orders placed by StellaService, a retail tracking firm. Separately, management consulting firm Kurt Salmon found that 13 percent of 100 orders did not make it in time, down from 15 percent in 2013.
To avoid a repeat of last year when 2 million packages failed to arrive in time, both retailers and delivery companies planned for the worst-case scenario.
For instance, Amazon offered discounts almost a month earlier to get consumers to shop ahead of schedule, and other brick-and-mortar retailers encouraged consumers to order online, but to pick-up last-minute packages in the store rather than risk late delivery. Major delivery companies also prepped far in advance, hiring thousands of extra staff to work in warehouses and deliver packages. But no doubt it helped that the weather cooperated, with no major blizzards shutting down the nation’s major routes.
However, not all retailers were made equal this holiday, with some experiencing more problems than others. Nine of the 40 retailers surveyed by StellaService missed a delivery to at least one region (7 percent of packages), whereas 31 others experienced on-time arrivals.
Staples and Toys ‘R’ Us missed deliveries in multiple regions, but other retailers experienced at least one error. The full naughty list is: Best Buy, Costco, Crate & Barrel, J.C. Penny, Kohl’s, Macy’s and Wayfair. Of the delayed packages, eight were shipped via UPS and six were ordered in the Southern U.S.
Companies that experienced no problems as part of the survey included Amazon, Gap, Footlocker, Home Depot, Newegg, Pottery Barn and Walmart.
In addition, four companies really stood out from the pack, offering super late cutoff deadlines while also delivering on time. Those companies are: Apple, Nordstrom, Dell and Amazon-owned Zappos.
All of these retailers allowed shoppers to order as late as Dec. 23, and offered a variety of shipping options, including UPS Next Day Air or FedEx Standard Overnight to get it to your house on time.
StellaService conducted the same study in 2013, but with only a sample of 25 companies. In that study, eight retailers failed to deliver at least one package on time. The companies that missed delivers for the past two years in a row are Staples, Macy’s and Kohl’s.
A Nordstrom spokesperson said, “UPS was an incredible partner to us over the holiday season. We developed a great plan together to help us ensure we could take care of our customers throughout the season.”
Despite last year’s problems, most retailers were reluctant to require shoppers to place orders any earlier. For instance, Amazon gave customers until midnight ET on Dec. 19 to make purchases in order to qualify for guaranteed Christmas delivery. The deadline was two days later than last year, and was the most popular deadline by all retailers.
