Small and medium-sized food businesses are having to rethink their fleet operations this festive season on the back of increasing demand for deliveries.
Over half (54%) of SME food retailers are experiencing higher demand for deliveries this Christmas, compared with the last two years, new research from tracking and telematics specialist Vimcar finds.
Almost 90% of those surveyed now offer a delivery service for their customers, responding to changing purchasing habits from customers. While this was an existing trend, it’s been vastly accelerated since the start of the pandemic, with many customers now expecting delivery options to be available as standard, rather than as an additional option.
And this is putting clear pressure on deliveries and demand on fleets.
A total of 93% of respondents say they are having to increase their fleet size to keep up with demand, but are grappling with the impact of delivery driver shortages at the same time.
Furthermore, almost all (96%) food businesses running delivery operations expect their fleet running costs to increase due to higher demand.
Despite these pressures, the majority of respondents (78%) feel optimistic about business performance for the Christmas period 2021, as a result of the increase in demand and the lifting of Covid restrictions in comparison to 2020.
Sami Eric, UK country manager at Vimcar, said: “It is really uplifting to see that small and medium sized food retailers are thriving in the run up to Christmas, especially after a very challenging couple of years. With these higher demands comes higher expectations for businesses to meet. This research shows the challenges that the food industry is facing during the busiest time of the year, and the need for customers to be understanding of the changing landscape to which businesses are adapting to.”
Eric added: “As pressure mounts, efficient fleet management will be crucial in helping SMEs to offset rising fleet costs as well as maximise the investment they have made into new delivery services. Poorly managed fleets and drivers can quickly drain a business’ costs and resources, so implementing a fleet management tool is vital to simplify time spent on fleet admin and maintenance.”
