Peak 2025 Wrap-Up

Our Polls Reveal Retailer Priorities, Pressure and Performance

Peak 2025 did not follow a single dramatic spike. Instead, it unfolded as a series of sustained pressure points. Beginning with cautious consumer behaviour, intensifying through Black Friday and Cyber Week, and carrying right through to the final delivery days before Christmas.

While headline volumes fluctuated week to week, the underlying challenge for retailers remained constant: delivering certainty in an environment with very little margin for error. Consumer expectations were high, patience was low and operational tolerance for disruption narrowed as Peak progressed.

Across our five Peak Bulletins, responses from the eCommerce community to our weekly polls painted a clear picture of how priorities evolved in real time. In particular, the polls provided a useful barometer of where pressure was felt most acutely; not in theory, but on the ground.

We present a summary of what retailers told us, and what it signals for delivery strategy going forward.

Carrier Capacity and Network Resilience Dominated the Season

Across Peak, carrier capacity and performance consistently ranked as the biggest source of pressure for retailers.

  • Ahead of Black Friday, 50% of respondents cited capacity constraints or carrier performance as their primary concern.

  • During Cyber Week, managing carrier capacity remained the dominant operational focus.

  • In the final 10 days before Christmas, 67% of respondents said carrier capacity was where their teams felt the most pressure.

This reflects a Peak season where networks largely held up (but only just). Volumes frequently exceeded forecast, leaving little room for recovery when disruption occurred.

Peak 2025 exposed how thin the buffer has become across last-mile networks. Capacity wasn’t failing; it was fully consumed, making flexibility and rapid decision-making essential rather than optional.

Delivery Reliability Outweighed Cost as Deadlines Tightened

Cost pressures were present throughout Peak, driven by surcharges, premium delivery uptake and operational complexity. However, as Christmas approached, delivery reliability clearly overtook cost as the deciding factor.

In the final days before Christmas:

  • 50% of retailers prioritised speed over cost

  • 50% prioritised carrier reliability

  • Cost sensitivity and delivery cut-off confidence dropped to zero

Earlier in the season, margin pressure featured more prominently, particularly during Black Friday discounting. But once deadlines tightened, the trade-off became clear: protecting customer trust took precedence over protecting margin.

In a mature eCommerce market, retailers recognise that a missed Christmas delivery carries a far higher long-term cost than a more expensive shipping decision.

Customer Experience Became Delivery-Led

Early Peak polls showed a mix of concerns around customer experience, operational excellence and cost. But as the season progressed, customer experience increasingly became synonymous with delivery execution.

Retailers consistently highlighted:

  • The importance of accurate delivery promises
  • Clear cut-offs at checkout

  • Strong tracking and pro-active communication

By late Peak, the pressure shifted away from acquisition and conversion, and towards keeping promises already made.

Peak 2025 showed that customer experience is no longer shaped at checkout alone. It is defined in the days that follow, through visibility, reliability and communication.

Operational Pressure Concentrated into Fewer, Higher-Risk Days

With Christmas Day falling mid-week, delivery demand became increasingly concentrated. Retailers faced:

  • Higher volumes across fewer despatch days

  • Greater reliance on next-day services

  • Increased sensitivity to weather and local disruption

Poll responses compressed pressure onto:

  • Fulfilment speed and accuracy accounted for 33% of operational stress

  • Carrier capacity accounted for the remaining 67%

This dynamic placed a premium on execution discipline: adapting service mixes quickly and maintaining contingency routes.

Peak success was less about reacting to volume spikes and more about anticipating where pressure would concentrate and acting early to relieve it.

What Retailers Want to Fix Before Peak 2026

When asked what they want to strengthen ahead of the next Peak, retailers focused less on structural change and more on refining the delivery experience:

  • Faster, more reliable delivery

  • Better returns experience

  • Stronger delivery transparency

  • Improved multi-carrier flexibility

Retailers aren’t chasing more complexity. They are looking to make existing delivery strategies work harder, with greater consistency, visibility and customer confidence.

Closing Perspective

Peak 2025 reinforced a simple but important reality: delivery is now the point where operational pressure, customer expectation and brand trust converge.

The retailers who navigated Peak most effectively were not those offering the deepest discounts, but those who:

  • Maintained realistic promises

  • Stayed flexible under pressure

  • Communicated clearly when conditions changed

As Peak draws to a close, the opportunity is no longer just to recover but to reflect. The lessons of Peak 2025 point towards a future where delivery strategy is not seasonal, but continuous, resilient and designed around certainty.

Every Peak leaves lessons behind…

The strongest retailers are those who take time to assess them before the next cycle begins.

If you’d value an objective view on delivery performance, resilience and readiness for 2026, we’re here to help.

Contact Us when you’re ready.