Get your Christmas shopping done early or face disappointment, experts warn
The advice from retailers is to start Christmas shopping early to avoid disappointment. File picture: Nick Ansell/PA Wire
Continuing supply chain difficulties across the world mean people will need to prepare for Christmas earlier this year, experts have warned.
Supply delays and costs have arisen from a variety of issues: the shortage of lorry drivers, the impact of Covid, complications arising from Brexit and even the blocking of Egypt’s Suez Canal by cargo ship Ever Given earlier this year is still having an impact.
In Ireland, a range of issues, both domestic and international, is affecting supply lines, according to the president of the Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA).
Eugene Drennan said the Suez Canal incident “wrecked the supply line” for about six to 10 weeks, and it hasn't quite recovered.
Last March, the Ever Given – one of the world's largest container ships, carrying about 40,000 containers – was travelling from Malaysia to the Netherlands when it ran aground in the canal and was stuck for six days.
“People took other ways around it and suddenly then when it all freed up, you have too many containers on this side of the world and not enough on the Asian side of the world," he said.
Logistics in Asia are also being affected by Covid. “Their supply, their manufacturing base and how streamlined it was and the volumes that came out has been restricted. Because they have had people off on reduced working hours and out sick and whatever Covid brought.”
As a result, the cost of bringing a container from Asia to Ireland has trebled since the beginning of the pandemic, while the goods inside the container have “probably gone up double because of lack of supply”.
Getting a container from south-east Asia to Ireland can take about three months by sea, up to five weeks by rail or it can be flown, with each option being more expensive than the last.
Domestically, costs for hauliers have also “absolutely shot up”, says the hauliers' representative, with diesel having increased in price by about 26c per litre in the last three months.
Some goods destined for Ireland land in England first, particularly in franchise operations, which has "a time lag and a time delay and a lot of paperwork to it”, Mr Drennan added.
When goods do arrive at Irish ports, the timeframes for getting them out is much shorter, because ports are running on restricted hours and there is less space to work.
“The timeline for getting them out of the port is shortened. What you’d get in a day is gone to a day and a half or maybe two days.”
A shortage of drivers in Ireland is also having an impact, with Mr Drennan saying it needs to be looked at urgently.
And there's no end in sight, with these issues potentially lasting until mid-2022.
With all this in mind, his advice to the public ahead of Christmas is definite – buy now, and not just for expensive gifts.
Even staple Christmas baking ingredients should be purchased in advance, he said. “A lot of that has a long-term date. Have it.”
On top of the supply issues, consumers are being reminded of new customs rules governing non-EU goods, which came into effect in July.
Angus Laverty, public affairs manager at An Post, was keen to stress the majority of parcels bought online arrive without issue, but some are not being received.
“Online shopping delivery by An Post for local Irish and EU retailers and with larger international retailers such as Amazon, Marks & Spencer and River Island is running smoothly, and this accounts for more than 95% of e-commerce parcels coming into Ireland through An Post,” he said.
But, due to the new rules and Brexit, some customers in Ireland who are buying items from smaller non-EU shops, including British retailers, are experiencing significant delays or not receiving their goods at all. This is due to both an EU customs requirement for additional electronic documentation and more goods being either restricted or prohibited from coming into Ireland from non-EU markets.
"This is giving rise to customs delays when these parcels arrive in Ireland and/or the items having to be returned to sender because the necessary electronic data is missing or incomplete, or the contents are restricted or prohibited.”
An Post has very little control over this, he said, and once Customs decree there is not enough information or data on a parcel, it has to go back.
“It is an issue and it has changed the landscape for shoppers,” he added.
An Post has also warned that gift parcels being sent by family and friends in Britain to Irish addresses are also being impacted. Mr Laverty advises anyone shopping online for Christmas to start now.
“Get it done. Skip all the queues. Start now and plan it, and keep an eye on all those customs changes that are definitely causing issues for people.”
He urged people to seek out information when shopping online and advised shoppers to deal with “established traders who have set up a system where everything is transparent and apparent”.
Mr Laverty said the key thing for people was to “be aware that the customs rules have changed and do a bit of research”.
The good news for consumers is that there are no such issues when shopping online in Ireland or other EU countries, as no customs tariffs apply when buying from these locations.
“Similarly, no issues arise when shopping with major British or international retailers where smooth online processes have already been developed with An Post.”
Some stores are already seeing high demand for traditional gifts.
A spokesperson for Smyths Toys said it “is always a good idea so as to avoid the rush and to avoid disappointment”.
A spokesperson for Halfords said bikes, scooters, in-car technology, car maintenance tools and car cleaning products are predicted to be popular gifts this year.
The spokesperson said cycling stocks have been impacted “by the well-documented global supply chain issues”, but Halfords has better availability on children's bikes and electric bikes.
“Our kids' bikes are invariably highly sought-after Christmas gifts which we expect will be the case again this year, so we would encourage parents to get their bike as early as possible and avoid disappointment on the big day.”
Jaimie Cantwell – head of electricals at Currys PC World Ireland – said they were already seeing demand building for “traditional gifts like smartwatches, speakers and headphones”.
“Gaming consoles are still extremely popular, with lots of new releases in the last year, so PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo are all in high demand,” he told the .
Mr Cantwell advised keeping an eye out for high-demand items sooner rather than later to avoid disappointment. He also said the returns policy should be considered.
“Keep an eye out for the returns policy, especially if you are purchasing gifts early this year. We extend our Christmas returns policy each year to give consumers peace of mind when they are shopping with us, but it is worth checking this for all of your Christmas gifts.”
But why has there been such a push from companies to get people shopping earlier? It is largely down to global shipping delays.
So, with all that in mind, happy shopping. And may the odds be ever in your favour.
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