To expect companies to have been prepared for the Christmas rush

[Noodledoodledoo]

I am getting so fed up with Christmas deliveries not arriving.

I have not left things to the last minute, I have 2 orders I made in November, one the 14th one the 26th which I am having a nightmare being delivered.

I get they are swamped but it has now messed up 4 peoples presents which are unlikely to get there on time as I need to wrap and send on. I am aware there is a backlog at the post office so don't want to leave to the last minute when I ordered in good time!

Hobby craft and M&S have badly let me down this year, my attempt to not just rely on Amazon!

From M&S point of view, come next year the alternative shops in the same target market will likely have shrunk, which means having excellent customer service now is less of a priority as there isnt a wide range of competition. For them it might be worth the gamble.

Absolutely, good point and I totally understand M&S drivers for this RedToothBrush but the fact that they have basically stooped to this suggests that they are bit desperate, so it is quite the gamble.

It's the equivalent of shopping in store and other shoppers walking up and choosing things out of you basket. Not great user experience at all.

I think desparate is the word of the moment.

I don't think the majority of people understand how desperate and how bad the retail cash flow / supply chain issues are for some.

As i say I'm already hearing from friends in various industries about how there are really big problems developing that are likely to get worse in the next two weeks.

I have been waiting for nearly 3 weeks for a parcel sent via Royal Mail 48hr tracked delivery. The tracking info updates approx every 4 days with a new status. It's painfully slow but I suppose somewhat expected.

I have had no issues with anything else - Hermes, DPD and Amazon delivering pretty much as normal round here.

"But anyone here working in retail or for Royal Mail/couriers then I say WELL DONE you are doing a tough job it’s much appreciated🏻"

This....

The thing is, Covid has had a massive impact. My Dad's cooker broke in July. They've tried to fix it 4 times. The last time, the engineer left it in a worse state than it started in. He only has one functioning ring on the cooker now, but it's insured.

Stoves offered to replace it via AO. AO had no stock. So we asked Stoves to replace it. Stoves can't replace it, yet, because they have no stock. They can't deliver until 20th January. Then, they phoned to say that actually, production had been moved back and they now can't deliver until 9th February.

I explained the trouble my Dad is having, so they said 'well we could give you a credit for AO again....'. But if they don't have stock, AO certainly won't. It's just the way it is.

@RosePetalss

Possibly some good news. I've had a text and email from DPD with an hour delivery slot for thir evening. I've nothing else ordered at the moment so it must be the hoverkarts. Keep an eye out for message from DPD as it looks like they are getting some orders out at least.

@WhereverIGoddamnLike hi! I was going to message you on here and say exactly the same thing! Fingers crossed for us both it’s the Hoover karts! We will have happy kids this Christmas.

The ports are backed up at least 10 miles every day.
It's best to go to the store.

Id expect quicker delivery from places like M&S, large established stores.

But me and DH run a handmade product business and oh my lord, this Christmas has nearly killed us. To be fair we specify that it will take at least a couple of weeks for us to actually make the item and then postage on top but it hasn't stopped people placing orders from places like Australia (we are in the UK) on the 10th of December and then emailing none stop since the order goes through asking when it's going to be shipped because it's someone's present. We couldn't be clearer on our website how long we need!! Driving me mad.

As PP said, with so many more people ordering online this year it's just sky rocketed. Poor DH is in work at 5am-8pm Mon - Sun at the moment just trying to keep up.