Fulfilment that doesn’t flinch: How IFGlobal powers smarter Q4 fulfilment

We know peak season isn’t just another calendar event for ecommerce brands. It’s a pressure cooker of rising customer expectations, flash sales, fast-moving inventory, and kitting and bundling galore.  

If you don’t have the right fulfilment partner, systems stall. Inventory goes out of sync. Orders back up. Customer service gets swamped. And suddenly, that record-breaking sales day becomes a brand risk instead of reward.

Our adaptive fulfilment model is built to flip that script. Powered by BladePRO, supported by fulfilment centres across the UK, EU, and US, and fuelled by premium value-added services, we’re helping brands take control of peak and turn it into a launchpad for growth. Let’s explore how.

In this article

• Peak isn’t the problem, but your fulfilment model might be
• What you see: How we make Q4 peak work for you   
• What you don’t see: Q4 peak prep behind the scenes
• What’s new this peak with IFGlobal
• Your strategic growth partner 

Peak isn’t the problem, but your fulfilment model might be 

We hear it all the time. “Our fulfilment was fine... until peak.” That’s because most traditional fulfilment systems are designed for steady, predictable order volumes. Throw in a flash sale, a new product drop, or complex kitting and bundling and that’s when things unravel. And it’s your brand – not the warehouse – that takes the hit.

Our model is different. Fast, flexible, and built on modern tech, we’re not locked into legacy systems or rigid processes that turn fulfilment into a limiter. No more scrambling for headcount. No more 2-week delays for reworks. We work closely with our clients year-round to make Q4 feel as seamless as the rest of the year.  

What you see: How we make Q4 peak work for you

Fulfilment isn’t just operations. It’s your brand’s reputation on the line. It’s what turns a transaction into a repeat customer. That’s why we’re not waiting for issues to surface. Planning calls are happening now with clients, and forecasts are already being gathered to lock in capacity, staff resourcing, and dispatch bay allocation.  

“We work collaboratively with our clients to make each peak more successful than the last. Whether it’s helping them shape new campaign strategies or introducing new value-added services to their workflows, we bring ideas to the table that will help drive revenue and retention.” - Dom Webb, Account Manager, IFGlobal. 

Fast, flexible onboarding  

Need to ramp up capacity across new sites before peak? We know how stressful it is when you're racing the clock before Black Friday. That's why our standard onboarding process takes up to 4 weeks for new clients and can be as quick as a few days for existing clients expanding into new regions. We’ll integrate seamlessly with your existing tech stack, sales channels, and workflows, whether you’re managing 250 SKUs or 5,000. We help brands make these moves right up until October, so they’re embedded and ready before peak volume hits.

Fulfil where your customers are

Your customers expect next-day, not next-week. With fulfilment centres across the UK, EU, and US, we put your products where they need to be, so you deliver faster, cheaper, and with less carbon guilt.

Built-in value-added services

You shouldn’t have to choose between creativity and capacity. Kitting, bundling, relabelling, and rework are all built into how we operate, so you can run complex, personalised campaigns without losing momentum.

BladePRO: Your peak command centre

Your peak performance hinges on real-time visibility, speed, and precision. You don’t want your ops team squinting at spreadsheets. With BladePRO, you get a command centre for high-performance fulfilment, and access to:  

• Live inventory visibility across all sales channels so your ops team always know what’s where
• Forecasting based on actual order flow and historic trends so you can plan with purpose
• Automated workflows that reduce human error and keep things moving
• Performance dashboards that turn data into decisions

For seasonal brands like Heart & Soul Studio, peak used to mean chaos. Since partnering with us:

• Orders go out on time
• Complaints are down
• Their team finally has breathing room

“We wanted to find a partner we could trust with our products, and we needed the experience of full B2B and B2C fulfilment, rather than just pick and pack. With IFGlobal and BladePRO we have traceability, improved ordering, and better communication with customers. The whole process is easier, and we have fewer complaints about delivery times, which is crucial for a seasonal business.” - Aga Szyszka, Logistics Lead, Heart & Soul Studio. 

What you don’t see: Q4 prep behind the scenes 

While you’re planning promos and building buzz, we’re in the background finetuning your fulfilment engine so it doesn’t stall when the pressure hits.

Peak season 2024 was our best performance yet. We achieved: 

• 28.7% growth in order volume between 1 Nov 2024 - 10 Jan 2025 

• Order SLA increase of 11% versus the previous year across all our global sites between 1 Nov 2024 - 10 Jan 2025  

• 52% more orders picked, packed and dispatched during Black Friday weekend 2024 versus 2023 

Here’s what our account managers and operations teams are already doing to make this peak season even better: 

Forecast & volume planning  

We work directly with our carrier partners to lock in extra capacity based on your projected volumes. That means fewer surprises when order volumes spike. 

We’ll also align your marketing calendar to volume estimates, so ops and promos stay perfectly in sync. 

Delivery SLAs & cut-offs 

We’ll confirm carrier SLAs, delivery timelines, and blackout dates well in advance so your customer comms are accurate and your brand promise holds up under pressure.

Collection & linehaul coordination 

We adjust and confirm pickup schedules across all our fulfilment sites and coordinate linehaul, even for out-of-hours collections, so orders keep moving. 

Built-in contingency plans 

Peak season is unpredictable. Strikes, network congestion, courier walkouts – you name it, we’ve planned for it. When Evri and DPD had major walkouts in peak 2022, our clients didn’t feel the impact because backup carriers and contingency workflows were already in place.  

"We speak directly with local depots, not just account managers. That gives us faster escalation paths and more accurate, real-time information when it matters most.” - Antony Day, Global Logistics & Carrier Manager.

What’s new this peak with IFGlobal   

To support higher volumes and faster turnarounds, we’re rolling out operational upgrades across our UK and international sites:

• More packing bays to handle increased order volume
• Scaled staffing plans with both permanent and seasonal recruitment
• Pre-stocked packaging materials based on client demand forecasts
• Extended warehouse hours, including early, late, and out-of-hours shifts
• A new Client Portal with built-in Live Chat for faster query resolution

Your strategic growth partner 

Our fulfilment partnerships don’t stop at pick and pack. We embed operational expertise into your peak season plan from day one. 

That’s why every IFGlobal partnership includes: 

• Collaborative planning – We align with your marketing calendar, product launches, and promo schedule to avoid capacity clashes and sync campaigns to fulfilment.
• Smart inventory management – Stock where it needs to be, when it needs to be there, reducing cost and delivery time. 
• Real-time performance reporting – BladePRO dashboards that keep your whole team on the same page. 
• Experienced account managers – A dedicated team that understands your brand, your ambition, and what’s at stake.   

Case in point: our client Relish. 

“IFGlobal proved invaluable over Christmas. All orders were dispatched on time, and communication was excellent. The speed of packing was particularly impressive, with the team rapidly turning around large volumes.” - Kyle Hunt, Supply Chain Manager, Relish. 

Peak prep starts now 

We’ve seen what happens when brands wait too long to prep for peak. Missed sales. Burned-out teams. Angry customers. Peak readiness starts with strategy, systems, and partnerships built months in advance. It’s time to start laying the groundwork now. 

At IFGlobal, we’ve helped fast-growing DTC and B2B brands operate confidently during their busiest seasons by combining fulfilment muscle with operational brains.  

If you’re already working with us, speak with your Account Manager about your Q4 strategy. 

If you’re looking for a new fulfilment partner that can scale with you through peak and beyond, let’s talk before peak pressure hits.