Bring on the Christmas season

Online trade waxes and wanes with the seasons. As the days get shorter, shopping lists grow longer. In the run up to Christmas, consumers in our latitudes shop more frequently and for more. For many years now, Black Friday and the subsequent Cyber Monday have been the starting shot for the Christmas shopping season.

To stay on top of these seasonal peaks, Digitec Galaxus has hired backup again this year. In addition to the around 750 permanent logistics staff, there are now 230 temporary workers on fixed-term contracts and 80 temps working hard in Digitec Galaxus’ Swiss warehouses – for example in the packaging department or in incoming goods, where the trucks full of toys, kitchen appliances or Advent calendars pull up.

Dried up labour market

A logistics crew of almost 70 people is currently working in the German warehouse in Krefeld. The team is made up of mostly permanent employees and some temporary staff (see chart below). This crew is making sure that our customers in Germany and Austria receive their parcels in time. «We would have liked to hire even more people on a permanent basis,» says Robert Brohl, Head of Operations and the man in charge of logistics in Germany. «But we've had to rely quite heavily on temp offices.»

Mevlana Memeti, who recruits logistics specialists in Switzerland, tells a similar story: «The job market for logistics specialists has dried up,» she says. In fact, Mevlana & Co. have been looking for Christmas helpers since July, so almost two months earlier than in previous years.

High-tech support for Santa Claus

The numbers show there are slightly fewer employees currently working in logistics in Switzerland compared to last year. Nonetheless, Digitec Galaxus is well prepared for the Black Friday rush that’s about to sweep over its home market. In early November, the company put its fourth packaging machine into operation at its Wohlen warehouse. The four machines can each process around 8,500 parcels a day – a grand total of around 34,000 parcels – that don’t require filling material. «This should help us manage order volumes. Even on peak days,» says Head of Logistics Michel Boha.

Should this year’s rush prove to be huge, the company has one more wild card up its sleeve for Switzerland: like in previous years, colleagues from other departments and locations can lend a helping hand. Think software engineers from Zurich headquarters or employees from the brick-and-mortar shop in Kriens near Lucerne. «It’s an option we’ll only resort to in emergencies,» says Michel.

Have you done your holiday shopping yet? Are you looking forward to bagging some bargains on Black Friday and Cyber Monday? What do you think of the hype before Christmas? Thanks for letting us know in the comments!

Graphics made with Flourish.