Every peak season, sellers find: goods are in the warehouse, but can't get shipped. The problem is rarely "no stock" but "capacity being squeezed."
Three bottlenecks in peak season
- Inbound queue: everyone rushes to inbound before the holiday, receiving docks line up
- Picking overflow: order volume spikes, labor can't keep up
- Last-mile capacity: trucks and couriers are tight during holidays
Lay out half a quarter early
- Inbound bulk goods early; don't bet on the last week before the holiday
- Confirm cut-off time and capacity ceiling with the warehouse, and back-schedule replenishment accordingly
- Prepare at least two last-mile options to avoid a single carrier failing
Peak season is not about who has more goods, but who digests "uncertainty" earlier.
Treat capacity as a resource that needs booking, not a background assumed abundant, and peak season will drop fewer links.