Christmas boom at Driver Hire

Rapid growth in online sales means more home deliveries. And thatís good news for leading transport and logistics sector recruitment specialist, Driver Hire. As a result they embarked on a sustained recruitment drive to meet the demand for home delivery drivers during the frantic final weeks before Christmas.

ìWe supply temporary and permanent staff to a whole host of retailers and parcel delivery companies,î explains Driver Hireís Chief Executive, Chris Chidley. ìOnline sales are forecast to reach a staggering 13.9 billion this Christmas. This of course affects our business in a positive way and necessitates a recruitment drive for temporary drivers and other staff to meet the needs of national firms involved in the fast-growing home shopping sector.î

More than three quarters of British homes now have broadband internet. As well as the convenience factor, cheaper broadband deals and higher connection speeds are all helping to fuel the boom in online shopping ñ up a predicted 42 per cent on 2006. Clothing, electronics and food are set to account for a significant proportion of the Christmas seasonís online spend.

The resulting impact on businesses covering final mile delivery is phenomenal and itís easy to see why Driver Hire is experiencing a boom. Recent weeks have shown a consistent growth of 17-19% on the same time last year ñ a trend which is expected to continue in the weeks leading up to Christmas.

ìRetailers such as John Lewis and parcel delivery companies such as DH, Parcelnet and Home Delivery Network rely on a flexible temporary workforce to meet seasonal spikes in demand. In the long-term, to be a successful online retailer, they will need more and more of the transport and logistics staff that we supply,î Chris continues.

ìWe are uniquely placed to meet their needs. Our ISO 9001 quality systems mean that they have the comfort of knowing that all their stores and depots are using temporary staff from a compliant and reputable supplier with a truly national network.î

Forrester Research