Meeting the Challenges of Holiday Rush 2021 - CLDA
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WASHINGTON, D.C., Sept. 29, 2021 — Keeping up with record backlogs and the ‎traditional gift buying season will make this Holiday Rush one for the books. That’s ‎the consensus of two industry veterans, one, the owner of a logistics company and ‎the other a supply chain service provider.‎

Steve Howard is president of the Customized Logistics & Delivery Association ‎‎(CLDA) and the president of Esquire Logistics, Inc in Florida. Chris Kane is the CEO ‎of Drivv powered by Courierboard & CBDriver also based in Florida.‎

Both men acknowledge that the unique challenges facing carriers this holiday ‎season make preparing for it a challenge. “It’s a big unknown,” said Howard. “We ‎have been extremely busy all year with peak numbers every day. There are so ‎many unidentified variables that could impact this year’s Holiday Rush. People are ‎already buying on-line in record numbers, so there’s every reason to expect they’ll ‎do the same with holiday gifts. And let’s not forget the last few Holiday Seasons ‎when the big three, UPS, Fed-EX and USPS, struggled with volume. I have every ‎reason to believe that they will be hard-pressed again in handling this holiday ‎season’s volume. That will most likely mean more work for our members, who are ‎mostly regional providers.”‎

Kane confirmed his expectations of increased volume this year. “I believe we are ‎going to continue to see a huge increase in on-demand deliveries this holiday ‎season from companies, retailers and individuals,” he said. “Everything is being ‎delivered today as people shy away from in-person shopping. There are also ‎backlogs and shortages of building materials that need to be delivered ASAP as ‎they become available. This will be another drain on capacity. There’s also pent-up ‎demand because everyone has been home for over a year. Add those together with ‎holiday gift buying and we’ll see a tidal wave of delivery demand in November and ‎December.”‎

There are also lingering issues from the pandemic that will have an impact on the ‎‎2021 Holiday Delivery Season. The most significant will be getting a large enough ‎workforce. “There is a real challenge at the moment when it comes to hiring ‎drivers and employees,” points out Howard. “We typically ramp up our hiring in ‎October, but we have not stopped hiring all year. It appears that things are ‎starting to normalize again, but with COVID raging in South Florida at the moment ‎there is still a lot of concern about the effects it will have on the available work ‎force.”‎

Kane has a front row seat on the driver shortage. His company, Drivv, is an online ‎driver recruiting platform for courier companies to engage new drivers. They also ‎have a driver contract website where independent contractors can search driver ‎contract ads from courier companies called CBDriver. “Driver availability is the ‎critical factor that will impact the 2021 holiday season,” he says. “The extended ‎pandemic unemployment benefits have negatively affected the driver population. ‎There are more companies advertising for drivers than ever before on our platform. ‎The competition for professional drivers is intense with an increase in driver ads ‎featuring incentives and sign on bonuses. To respond to these issues, Drivv has ‎added new recruiting features including a search for Master Contractors, so ‎companies can search our database for Master Contractors and see how many ‎drivers and vehicle types they oversee.”‎

Both men expect to ramp up the search for drivers. “We are planning on a hiring ‎blitz a month earlier than normal,” says Howard. “Our goal is to have an excellent ‎team in place well before the historic beginning of peak which is usually around ‎Black Friday.” The CBDriver platform will be rolling out a new online driver ‎community forum, DriverTalk, which will help drivers connect, find new driving ‎opportunities and share information with other drivers.‎

This escalating race to find, train and get more drivers up to speed will put ‎tremendous pressure on logistics companies for the holiday season. “Bringing on ‎staff early can be a challenge because of the cost of adding them well before you ‎need them. The reality is that the company that has the delivery staff will most ‎likely win!” says Howard. Drivv and CBDriver is already seeing that trend. ‎‎“Demand is up for courier delivery services and drivers,” says Kane. “The volume ‎of driver ads posted on Drivv /CBDriver is up by over 300% versus last year.”‎

Flexibility and early recruitment will be the keys to surviving Holiday Rush 2021, ‎according to these two industry pros. “Start recruiting now!” advises Kane. ‎‎“Drivers are essential to handle the anticipated high demand this Holiday Season ‎and companies should use as many different resources as possible to recruit ‎them.” Howard adds: “My advice is to be ready to adjust quickly. None of us ‎knows what this season will look like but being prepared is critical to your survival.” ‎

About the Customized Logistics and Delivery Association
The Customized Logistics and Delivery Association (CLDA) is a non-profit ‎professional association that connects and leads members of the time-critical ‎logistics and delivery industries. The association serves the needs of its 2,900 ‎essential service members who are logistics professionals, carriers, shippers, ‎drivers, air cargo logistics providers, 3PLs and vendors servicing today’s supply ‎chain companies. The CLDA gives its members access to a diverse network of ‎logistics professionals looking to create new business opportunities and share ‎decades of practical insights. They provide an avenue for amplifying members’ ‎voices on key issues and helps them participate in the regulatory discussions ‎shaping the industry. The CLDA keeps members informed and educated on trends, ‎current issues and best practices. 

Media Contact
Andrea Obston ‎
aobston@aomc.com
‎(860) 803-1155 ‎

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Meeting the Challenges of Holiday Rush 2021

WASHINGTON, D.C., Sept. 29, 2021 — Keeping up with record backlogs and the ‎traditional gift buying season will make this Holiday Rush one for the books. That’s ‎the consensus of two industry veterans, one, the owner of a logistics company and ‎the other a supply chain service provider.‎

Steve Howard is president of the Customized Logistics & Delivery Association ‎‎(CLDA) and the president of Esquire Logistics, Inc in Florida. Chris Kane is the CEO ‎of Drivv powered by Courierboard & CBDriver also based in Florida.‎

Both men acknowledge that the unique challenges facing carriers this holiday ‎season make preparing for it a challenge. “It’s a big unknown,” said Howard. “We ‎have been extremely busy all year with peak numbers every day. There are so ‎many unidentified variables that could impact this year’s Holiday Rush. People are ‎already buying on-line in record numbers, so there’s every reason to expect they’ll ‎do the same with holiday gifts. And let’s not forget the last few Holiday Seasons ‎when the big three, UPS, Fed-EX and USPS, struggled with volume. I have every ‎reason to believe that they will be hard-pressed again in handling this holiday ‎season’s volume. That will most likely mean more work for our members, who are ‎mostly regional providers.”‎

Kane confirmed his expectations of increased volume this year. “I believe we are ‎going to continue to see a huge increase in on-demand deliveries this holiday ‎season from companies, retailers and individuals,” he said. “Everything is being ‎delivered today as people shy away from in-person shopping. There are also ‎backlogs and shortages of building materials that need to be delivered ASAP as ‎they become available. This will be another drain on capacity. There’s also pent-up ‎demand because everyone has been home for over a year. Add those together with ‎holiday gift buying and we’ll see a tidal wave of delivery demand in November and ‎December.”‎

There are also lingering issues from the pandemic that will have an impact on the ‎‎2021 Holiday Delivery Season. The most significant will be getting a large enough ‎workforce. “There is a real challenge at the moment when it comes to hiring ‎drivers and employees,” points out Howard. “We typically ramp up our hiring in ‎October, but we have not stopped hiring all year. It appears that things are ‎starting to normalize again, but with COVID raging in South Florida at the moment ‎there is still a lot of concern about the effects it will have on the available work ‎force.”‎

Kane has a front row seat on the driver shortage. His company, Drivv, is an online ‎driver recruiting platform for courier companies to engage new drivers. They also ‎have a driver contract website where independent contractors can search driver ‎contract ads from courier companies called CBDriver. “Driver availability is the ‎critical factor that will impact the 2021 holiday season,” he says. “The extended ‎pandemic unemployment benefits have negatively affected the driver population. ‎There are more companies advertising for drivers than ever before on our platform. ‎The competition for professional drivers is intense with an increase in driver ads ‎featuring incentives and sign on bonuses. To respond to these issues, Drivv has ‎added new recruiting features including a search for Master Contractors, so ‎companies can search our database for Master Contractors and see how many ‎drivers and vehicle types they oversee.”‎

Both men expect to ramp up the search for drivers. “We are planning on a hiring ‎blitz a month earlier than normal,” says Howard. “Our goal is to have an excellent ‎team in place well before the historic beginning of peak which is usually around ‎Black Friday.” The CBDriver platform will be rolling out a new online driver ‎community forum, DriverTalk, which will help drivers connect, find new driving ‎opportunities and share information with other drivers.‎

This escalating race to find, train and get more drivers up to speed will put ‎tremendous pressure on logistics companies for the holiday season. “Bringing on ‎staff early can be a challenge because of the cost of adding them well before you ‎need them. The reality is that the company that has the delivery staff will most ‎likely win!” says Howard. Drivv and CBDriver is already seeing that trend. ‎‎“Demand is up for courier delivery services and drivers,” says Kane. “The volume ‎of driver ads posted on Drivv /CBDriver is up by over 300% versus last year.”‎

Flexibility and early recruitment will be the keys to surviving Holiday Rush 2021, ‎according to these two industry pros. “Start recruiting now!” advises Kane. ‎‎“Drivers are essential to handle the anticipated high demand this Holiday Season ‎and companies should use as many different resources as possible to recruit ‎them.” Howard adds: “My advice is to be ready to adjust quickly. None of us ‎knows what this season will look like but being prepared is critical to your survival.” ‎

About the Customized Logistics and Delivery Association
The Customized Logistics and Delivery Association (CLDA) is a non-profit ‎professional association that connects and leads members of the time-critical ‎logistics and delivery industries. The association serves the needs of its 2,900 ‎essential service members who are logistics professionals, carriers, shippers, ‎drivers, air cargo logistics providers, 3PLs and vendors servicing today’s supply ‎chain companies. The CLDA gives its members access to a diverse network of ‎logistics professionals looking to create new business opportunities and share ‎decades of practical insights. They provide an avenue for amplifying members’ ‎voices on key issues and helps them participate in the regulatory discussions ‎shaping the industry. The CLDA keeps members informed and educated on trends, ‎current issues and best practices. 

Media Contact
Andrea Obston ‎
aobston@aomc.com
‎(860) 803-1155 ‎