As the 2025 holiday season approaches, retailers and logistics providers are gearing up for what is forecasted to drive $253.4 billion in U.S. online sales between November 1 and December 31, a 5.3% year-over-year (YoY) increase. With Cyber Week alone expected to boost $43.7 billion in spend, the stakes are high, and so are the challenges. Here are five key challenges to watch for and how to solve them.
Challenge: Managing the significant spike in orders during peak season can overwhelm fulfillment operations, leading to delays and dissatisfied customers. With 10 days expected to exceed $5 billion in online spend, including Black Friday’s 8.3% YoY growth, fulfillment centres will face intense pressure to scale operations quickly. To avoid stockouts and shipping delays, many retailers increase their on-hand inventory, which requires flexible scalability, additional storage space and efficient operations.
Solution: Partnering with a 3PL that utilizes the latest technology can help manage volume fluctuations and provide real-time visibility into your supply chain. Progressive business intelligence tools allow businesses to better track their supply chain performance during peak season with insights such as historical trends and comparisons to SLAs. These tools enable 3PLs to measure, monitor, and optimize operations so retailers can make better, more informed decisions year after year. By monitoring their network, businesses can understand health trends, which is used to balance service levels and costs and improve their bottom line.
Read Metro Supply Chain’s blog to learn more about business intelligence in supply chain management.
Challenge: Retailers need to prioritize the growing demand by consumers to shop across multiple channels in 2025. A recent study found that 73% of consumers shop across multiple channels, and retailers that use three or more channels see a 251% increase in customer engagement. Mobile devices are set to drive 56.1% of online spend this season, totalling $142.7 billion. Shoppers are also 19.2% more likely to buy from stores offering omni-channel pick-up services.
Solution: Prioritizing a seamless omnichannel experience is crucial. From research to returns, the customer journey should be straightforward. This starts with improving fulfillment, social commerce and customer service. Offering flexible delivery options, regarding how, where and when orders are received, enhances customer value and competitiveness. Transparency, real-time updates and tracking tools are essential.
Managing multichannel fulfillment is complex, but third-party logistics (3PL) providers can simplify the process. They handle warehousing, inventory management, order processing and shipping, allowing businesses to focus on customer expectations while the 3PL manages logistics.
Learn more about omnichannel fulfillment in Metro Supply Chain’s blog.
Challenge: Buy now, pay later (BNPL) is expected to drive $20.2 billion in online spend as consumers look for greater flexibility in managing their budgets. With 79% of transactions occurring on mobile, this adds complexity to payment processing and order validation. BNPL transactions often require additional fraud checks and payment validation before fulfillment. This can delay order release if systems aren’t tightly integrated. Slower handoff from retailers can disrupt warehouse workflows.
Solution: 3PLs must be ready to process orders quickly once cleared, often with little lead time. Real-time API integration with a retailer’s BNPL platform ensures instant updates and faster pick-pack-ship cycles. 3PLs also need dynamic inventory systems that adjust in real time and support multi-node fulfillment strategies. Their fulfillment network should allow for rapid order routing based on location, inventory availability and delivery speed. By aligning technology, inventory agility and operational readiness, 3PLs can turn BNPL complexity into a competitive edge.
Challenge: A peak in sales inevitably results in a peak in returns. Retailers will first want to ensure their return policy is clear and easy to understand, and that their customer service team is trained to ensure a smooth return experience. Poorly handled returns can harm both reputation and revenue. When returns are handled quickly and easily, businesses will see better customer satisfaction and loyalty while reducing costs and capturing valuable data about processes and quality.
Solution: Retailers should have a process in place to handle returns that avoids any disruptions to their operations. Their third-party logistics (3PL) partner should provide comprehensive reverse logistics services that streamline the entire returns process and alleviate the burden of managing peak season returns.
They work with businesses to create a reverse logistics program that is seamlessly integrated with their current supply chain and logistics process. A 3PL partner also finds cost savings and operational efficiencies with a thorough inspection to determine whether your products should be reshelved, repaired or salvaged for parts before resorting to recycling and disposal.
Read more about how the high demand for quick and inexpensive returns are challenging businesses.
Challenge: Shifting trade policies and rising import tariffs are expected to increase costs on high-demand categories like electronics, appliances and apparel. Even modest duty hikes can compress margins or force last-minute price adjustments, impacting profitability and customer satisfaction.
Solution: An experienced 3PL partner can help retailers stay ahead of tariff-related disruptions through strategic sourcing and agile supply chain design. A global procurement network enables early identification of cost risks and alternative sourcing options. With real-time cost modeling and landed cost visibility, a 3PL can empower partners to make informed decisions on inventory allocation and pricing.
The holiday peak season is critical for direct-to-consumer brands, with many generating around 25% of their annual sales during this period alone, according to research. Customers have high expectations, seeking an enjoyable and memorable shopping experience across all channels, whether online or in-store. Retailers who master the end-to-end shopping experience can build customer loyalty, gain repeat buyers and boost their competitive advantage.
Missing out on peak season revenue due to supply chain deficiencies can lead to large setbacks for companies of any size. This is why it’s so important to find the right 3PL supply chain partner that can be adaptable to changing demands. It can make the difference between having a successful, lucrative peak period versus causing larger problems, stretching beyond the supply chain itself.
To alleviate this risk and avoid the “growing pains” of peak season fulfillment, the best strategy is to rely on an experienced supply chain partner (3PL) like Metro Supply Chain can take away the stress of distributing your products on time.
Metro Supply Chain brings decades of experience managing supply chains for wholesale, direct-to-consumer (DTC) and omnichannel retailers. We reduce costs, risks and complexity through continuous improvement, business intelligence and transparency.
From inventory planning to post-sales logistics, we deliver end-to-end supply chain solutions that scale with your business and exceed customer expectations.
Contact our experts today to learn how Metro Supply Chain can optimize your supply chain for peak season and beyond.