How are people preparing for a Black Friday unlike any other?

How are people preparing for a Black Friday unlike any other?

The new month-long lockdown, which came into effect in England on Thursday 5th November, means that the 2020 edition of Black Friday will be unlike any before. There will not be any of the usual scenes that we have been accustomed to seeing on Black Friday. No queues forming outside shops hours before they open, no mad rush to get inside. None of the usual hustle and bustle that is often associated with Black Friday. This is because non-essential retail, such as clothing and homeware stores, will be closed on Friday 27th November – Black Friday day.     

However, a recent survey* by Quadient has found that, even before details of the second lockdown had been announced, roughly 50 percent of UK shoppers are planning to do most of their Black Friday shopping online. This was largely due to two factors: 48 percent of respondents cited COVID-19 restrictions, whilst 45 percent said that it was more convenient to shop online.

Nevertheless, retailers will be allowed to continue offering ‘click-and-collect’ services during lockdown. This is good news for the near one-third (31 percent) of online shoppers who use click & collect services at least once a month. This service still being available benefits both consumers and retailers. Consumers do not have to wait at home all day for a delivery, whilst retailers have a much more cost-effective alternative to home deliveries.

Our survey, which asked 1,000 respondents from around the UK about their shopping intentions and parcel delivery expectations as consumers prepare for Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Christmas, made several other surprising findings. Just under one-third (29%) of UK consumers shop online more than once a week, whilst nearly three-quarters shop online at least once a month.

Additionally, the survey also highlighted issues when it comes to missed deliveries. 42 percent of shoppers said that they missed at least one delivery that required either a re-delivery attempt or depot collection in the last year, showing that this issue is a perennial problem. On top of this, 31 percent of shoppers expect to miss at least one delivery this year whilst a worrying 20 percent had experienced lost or stolen parcels in the past 12 months.

With consumers having had to change their shopping habits this year, this has brought to the fore issues with missed online deliveries and parcel storage. As residents continue to shop online more than usual, there is increasing pressure for efficient, secure, and convenient parcel management. Tackled in the right way, using intelligent parcel lockers, incoming parcel management can provide tenants with parcel deliveries and collections from home, while eliminating pressure on staff. By using parcel lockers, a great deal of potential concern around personal deliveries is removed thanks to the simplification and flexibility they provide to both managed properties and retailers.

Parcel locker users, when asked as to why they use lockers, cited convenience (24 percent) and 24/7 availability (22 percent). However, COVID-19 restrictions are also starting to influence locker use – 17 percent of respondents mentioned that as a reason behind their use of parcel lockers. The reduced contact nature of parcel lockers is of particular importance given the current circumstances. Additionally, when customers collect items in-store or from pick-up points they want the experience to be quick, convenient, and secure. Of course, that’s equally important to retailers, who benefit from having to deliver to fewer locations and reducing the need for staff involvement in click & collect order collections.

If you would like to find out more about our Parcel Lockers solutions, then visit our page here. 

*Survey of 1,000 general respondents in the UK between 28.10.20 – 30.10.20 conducted by Censuswide.