Don’t Let Your 4th of July Holiday Fizzle Out
Happy Birthday America! The Fourth of July holiday celebrates the birthday of the United States of America, but no one ever stops to think how this holiday gets pulled together. There is food – hot dogs, hamburgers, watermelon, etc. – and of course, fireworks – that must arrive from suppliers to retail outlets or consumers’ homes at the right time.
The National Retail Federation predicts that Americans will spend $6.9 billion on food over the 4th of July holiday. Other results from the NRF survey include:
- 9 out of 10 adults will celebrate the Fourth of July
- 31 million will be traveling
- 27% of people plan to purchase patriotic merchandise
- 62% of people are planning a cookout or picnic
- 61+ million cases of domestic beer will be drunk
- $325 million will be spent on fireworks in the US
For supply chain managers, the 4th of July holiday consists of a lot of variables that add complexities to supply chains. These include regional tastes, weather conditions, traffic patterns and local regulations that increase demand variability, making transporting the 4th of July goods on time to the right location quite hard to coordinate without the use of technology.
With the increase in shipments needed to get 4th of July merchandise, food and fireworks to retailers’ shelves, the decrease in capacity and lack of truck drivers to carry loads could potentially fizzle out any supply chain. Hopefully you planned early and can be flexible. Using a transportation management system (TMS) that collects data from across the supply chain and generates reports that help management make better, more informed decisions, can help you plan for seasonality within your operations.
A TMS that has thousands of carriers connected in a global network, or that allows you to access the spot market, can help you find the capacity you need, quickly and easily. A TMS that manages inbound freight can speed operations at the dock, helping distributors improve their operations and maximize efficiency.
With technology like Kuebix TMS managing your freight, your 4th of July with be the best celebration of the year.
