ATLANTA – Forget ordering online weeks in advance or dashing out to the drug store for a gift card on Christmas Eve. Procrastinating holiday shoppers are finding a haven online as retailers ramp up expedited shipping and same-day delivery services.
Far from discouraging last-minute online shoppers, retailers are actually courting them. Amazon is offering a “Procrastinator’s Delight” special. Clothing retailer Madewell proclaims on its website that “procrastinators get the best deals” – 25 percent off everything, with orders as late as noon Thursday for holiday deliveries.
It’s a far cry from 2013, when Amazon and package deliverers misjudged demand and delivered some holiday packages after Christmas. Since then, the Seattle company has added warehouses to be closer to customers. It has also leased jets and trucks to get packages delivered on time – even last-minute orders. Package carriers such as FedEx and UPS have also increased staffing and hired outside contractors for the holiday season.
“So many people are shopping online because it’s easier,” said Sucharita Mulpuru, chief retail strategist for the ShopTalk retail conference. “They’re waiting for the last minute because nobody is encouraging them to shop earlier.”
The number of holiday packages has been rising each year as more people shop online. Research firm comScore predicts online shopping during the November and December holiday period will rise as much as 19 percent from last year to $81 billion. That compares with an expected 3.6 percent rise in overall shopping during the same period to $656 billion, according to the National Retail Federation, an industry trade group.
That means many more packages each year. UPS predicts global delivery volume during the holidays will rise 14 percent from last year to about 700 million packages. FedEx expects volume to rise about 10 percent.
Meanwhile, the number of services for last-minute online orders keeps growing. Amazon has been expanding its Prime Now same-day delivery service, adding nine cities to reach 31 this year. It is using local delivery service providers and regular drivers as on-demand messengers. The service is catering to last-minute shoppers by offering a “Procrastinator’s Delight” program that will deliver products up until 11:59 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
PetSmart is offering same-day delivery through startup Deliv. Uber is using its network of contract drivers for same-day delivery of goods for small businesses in New York, San Francisco and Chicago.
In addition, Amazon now lets people subscribe to its regular $99-a-year Prime program, which offers free two-day shipping, on a month-by-month basis. That means shoppers can sign up in December to take advantage of free two-day shipping and have the option of canceling the next month.
All this could lead to a rush in last-minute online deliveries.
