For most businesses, the end of summer means the holiday season is just around the corner and preparations go in full gear. An important part of those preparations involves a third party logistics (3PL) provider to help with logistics management.

Outsourcing warehousing, distribution and logistics to a 3PL enables businesses to better manage the surge in supply and demand.

To prevent your business operations from getting overburdened during the holiday season, here are some holiday logistics tips, compliments of Brendamour Warehousing, Distribution & Services.

Get Your Supply Chain Ready Ahead of Time

Many businesses begin hiring and training seasonal employees in September to ensure their supply chain is ready to handle the rush and the increased volume of orders.****

Tip: Rather than hire and train more staff or shift employees from one area to logistics, let the skilled and experienced workforce at Brendamour Warehousing handle your warehousing, order fulfillment, order processing, pick and pack, distribution, and other logistics tasks.

Plan for the Unknown

Businesses should plan for the unexpected and have contingency plans in place for unforeseen circumstances, such as weather conditions delaying deliveries, higher than expected demand for a certain product, or more e-commerce orders than expected.****

Tip: Your business can use Brendamour to store additional inventory that doesn’t fit in your in-house warehouse space. Brendamour also has arrangements with carriers to move your goods around weather-related delays.

Optimize Your Distribution Channels

In order to forecast demand and fill it quickly, companies need to optimize their selling channels. This means enhancing information technology to provide predictive analytics that monitor trends and forecast consumer behaviors.****

Tip: If your businesses doesn’t have the capital to invest in IT, Brendamour Warehousing is equipped with the latest bar coding, inventory management and warehouse management systems to track inventory and shipments in real time and accurately forecast demand.

Think Automation

While many businesses may not want to invest in automated order fulfillment equipment since it is not their core competency, they can outsource functions to a 3PL public warehouse to enhance efficiency and ensure economical handling.

Tip: Inquire about Brendamour’s automated order fulfillment services, complete with a shipping and routing computer and gravity conveyor system designed to get orders prepared and shipped quickly.

Partner With a 3PL for Shipping

It’s challenging and costly for businesses to manage numerous suppliers and orders coming in from multiple channels. The more reliable, efficient and cost-effective method is using a third party logistics provider who already has a system in place and a relationship with carriers to move goods during the busiest shipping times.

Tip: Since Brendamour collaborates with multiple freight shippers, including road, rail, air, and ship, we can reduce your transportation costs through our established volume discount pricing arrangement, and find the fastest and most economical route to get your goods to their destination. In addition, Brendamour customers with smaller shipments can still get reduced full load rates by sharing transportation space with other public warehouse customers.

Arrange for Regional Transportation Carriers

Businesses can get an advantage over the competition by responding to customer demands for two-day or same day delivery by using regional carriers.

Tip: Check out Brendamour’s comprehensive contract trucking and distribution services, which include interstate, intrastate, and local delivery and pick up.

Establish a Reverse Logistics Plan

Holiday returns and exchanges are a given, so businesses need a plan in place to handle the increased volume in inbound inventory from all its distribution channels. A streamlined reverse logistics plan will save a business time and money, reduce waste, and ensure customer satisfaction.****

Tip: Brendamour can streamline your company’s returns by receiving them from all distribution channels, inspecting and sorting them, and returning items back to inventory, or following your company policy for damaged items. We can also set up an exchange process customized to your business requirements.

Holiday Prep with Brendamour

At Brendamour Warehousing, Distribution & Logistics, our services are designed to assist new businesses using our public warehouse just for the holiday season, and our existing customers who need to expand their inventory and distribution.

Using Brendamour’s public warehouse and 3PL services to handle your holiday rush ensures your business will not get overwhelmed during busy seasons. Contact us now and start planning for a profitable holiday season!