Comment: Royal Mail strike could cause Christmas delivery chaos

A planned strike by Royal Mail workers could leave retailers in a tight spot over Christmas as etail becomes increasingly vital.

If the Communication Workers Union secures the votes they need this month, strike action by workers at the Royal Mail will be, in their own words, “inevitable”.

And were this to take place in October, as many observers predict, retailer reputations will be at risk just as they enter the all-important Christmas shopping window.

Just think what would have happen if a major shopping centre became inaccessible in the run-up to Christmas?  Well, in essence that’s what the strike will do –temporarily excluding certain operators from the market, forcing disappointed customers to look elsewhere for their shopping.

Will disquiet be channeled solely at the Royal Mail?  Unfortunately I don’t think so.  Inevitably it will be the consumer that bears the brunt of the disruption and with increasingly high expectations and a lack of distinction between the person that hands the parcel over and the retailer, their frustration will be directed to the brand itself.

So retailers need to get their thinking caps on – and quickly.  Royal Mail’s clients will need to work with multiple carriers to ensure that networks, already approaching capacity and ‘reserved’ for scheduled deliveries, are able to integrate additional volume.

But as an industry we have to play our part. We can make it even easier for retailers to access our services and plug into multiple partners, managing capacity dynamically. Smarter technology has a major role to play in delivering this ‘network effect’ – squeezing additional capacity from existing operators – but only if we all speak the same language.

It might not feel like it to many retailers, but disruption could actually be a catalyst to a more flexible customer experience. The growth in ‘Click, Collect and Deliver’ – a move to harness spare capacity and turn stores into mini distribution centres – is a good example of how this can work for all concerned.  

The combination of convenience and reliability with the immediacy of the delivery can also reduce pressure on existing operations whilst attracting a modest premium from the customer who is willing to pay for added convenience.

In my opinion creativity and proactivity will be key for etailers as they prepare for unplanned disruptions and pressures on their networks as they approach the ever-widening Christmas window. We need to start planning now.

Patrick Gallagher is chief executive of CitySprint