Black Friday Week 2024: Statistics you should know
Increased volume
There was an increase of 8% in shipments compared to Cyber Week 2023. Compared to a typical Friday, a 74.3% increase in shipments was created. On average, Paazl customers used 2.7 carriers during this period.
Sustainable delivery options are a must
During the Black Friday Cyber Monday sale in 2024, there was a significant increase in the number of customers choosing sustainable delivery options for their packages. Approximately 7.4% of all shipments were sent to out-of-home (OOH) locations, such as lockers, pick-up and drop-off points (PUDOs), and stores.
Three best performing segments*
In 2023, the Beauty & Personal Care sector was the leading performer, followed by Fashion, Shoes and Accessories, and Living, Cooking, Household & Lifestyle. Collectively, these categories accounted for over 50% of the shipments generated on our platform.
*This data is based on shipments created.
| Industry | % of total |
| Beauty & Personal Care | 23,9% |
| Fashion, Shoes & Accessories | 19,5% |
| Living, Cooking, Household & Lifestyle | 14,6% |
Peak hours
The peak purchase time during this entire period was from 21:00 pm to 22:00 pm on Black Friday (29 November).
The best time to shop
Cyber Monday was the most popular date to shop on Black Friday 2023! The shipping volume was 8.5% higher than on Black Friday. Compared to Cyber Monday 2022, we saw an 11% increase in shipping volume.
Top 5 countries by shipments volume
1 The Netherlands 59,10%
2 Germany 10,66%
3 UK 9,11%
4 Belgium 8,99%
5 France 2,60%
Average waiting time for Black Friday weekend orders in the Netherlands
Consumers who purchased their order on Black Friday had to wait an average of 64.42 hours or approximately 2.5 days for their parcel. The delivery time increased even further for those who ordered the Saturday or Sunday after Black Friday. Saturday orders took an average of four days; for orders on Sunday, this was approximately three days.
| ORDER DAY | AVERAGE WAITING TIME |
| BLACK FRIDAY (29 November) | 2,5 days |
| SATURDAY (30 November) | 4 days |
| SUNDAY (1 December) | 3 days |
Package delays in the Netherlands provinces during Black Friday Week
According to the Parcel Radar, a data analysis from Wuunder, the highest percentages of delayed packages were recorded in Flevoland (36%), South Holland (35.7%), Groningen (33.3%) and Friesland (32.8%). Zooming in on the daily average, Monday 2 December stood out with no less than 41 percent of parcels delayed. In Flevoland, more than half of the parcels (56%) were delayed that day. As the week progressed, the crowds decreased. On 6 December, the day after parcel evening, there were no more delays in eight provinces.
Conclusion: E-commerce stores need to stay ahead of the game
Paalz has worked closely with hundreds of brands & retailers over the past months to make sure that delivery wouldn’t be the bottleneck in their online operations. We looked at the market, we spoke with our customers and we prepared our own platform.
Here are the main 4 things that we’ve learned:
- Expect the unexpected. And plan ahead.
Nobody owns a crystal ball, but we can prepare for situations that are not so likely to happen. A nice way of preparing for the worst thing that can happen is to organize a “war game”, usually used by the military as a serious tool for training or research. Make it a teambuilding activity and have a plan in place for the moment where your shipping volume reaches +1000% - Don’t bet on one horse.
Have a backup plan for whenever your delivery partner(s) run into trouble and make sure you are able to switch delivery services -or carriers in the blink of an eye whenever necessary. - Spread your volumes wherever possible.
Persuade your customers to spread their buying sprees so you won’t have to fulfil all orders in one week(end). Offer nominated day delivery for customers who can wait a couple more days (you can even experiment with different shipping rates) and spread your volume over multiple carriers to make sure you have enough capacity to ship during peak moments. - Communication is key.
Whatever you do, make sure to inform your customers in the best way possible. Start at the checkout by communicating expected delivery dates (not the same as shipping speed), offer options for nominated days and if you’re not sure about the exact date, offer day-ranges to make sure you deliver on your promise. Last but not least: make sure you communicate with your customers with good track & trace e-mails that are coming directly from your brand to build a relationship of trust with your customers.
Paazl is the shipping software for the best delivery experience.
Paazl delivers more satisfied and engaged customers for your brand and helps your business grow globally.
We enable you to create the best delivery experience possible, everywhere you sell your products.
Contact us and we will be happy to tell you more about how we’re powering the promise that brands like Puma, G-Star RAW, TAG Heuer, Under Armour, and Rituals make to their customers.