All the Posting Information You Need to Be Ready for Christmas

Christmas is always a hectic time for the UK postal service, and there are always updates to their systems and processes that can impact both personal mail and business transactions. In today’s post, we’ll cover all the essential posting information to make sure your shipping stays stress-free leading up to Christmas.

For small businesses and individuals sending parcels, Royal Mail updates are crucial. Additionally, Kite customers should be mindful of our own delivery schedules, especially for customized products that require longer lead times. The packaging industry typically shuts down during the holiday season, so placing orders before the festive break is key. We’ll provide more details about specific delivery windows later in this post.

If you have any questions about delivery guidelines or just want to chat, feel free to reach out to us on Twitter—@kitepackaging.

Royal Mail Pricing in Proportion Changes

The recent adjustments to Royal Mail’s Pricing in Proportion (PiP) guidelines have been live for a couple of weeks now. For those who may not be familiar, these guidelines help customers understand the cost and stamps required to send various sized parcels and envelopes. The changes aren’t overly dramatic, but they’re worth noting.

A new category has been introduced, dividing the small parcel option into two distinct categories: ‘wide’ and ‘deep,’ which carry the same cost. The ‘wide’ option has always been known as the standard ‘Small Parcel,’ while the newly added ‘Small Parcel Deep’ makes it more cost-effective to ship larger packages. This change replaces the old 16 x 16 x 16 option, which wasn’t widely advertised by the authority.

Regarding our product range, this means that our postal boxes, like the single-wall cardboard boxes, can now be shipped using the ‘Small Parcel Deep’ option. This is fantastic news for our customers, as it saves money compared to the previous requirement to use the ‘Medium Parcel’ guidelines, which start at £5.65 for 1st class postage. You can find the full guidelines, including the matching mailing bags, envelopes, and boxes for each category in our updated PiP Postal Guide.

Christmas Posting Dates

Every year, the Royal Mail releases a guide detailing the last posting dates before the Christmas holidays. International shipments are particularly common during this time, especially if you’re sending gifts to family or clients overseas. These deadlines are fast approaching, so act quickly! To ensure your packages arrive before Christmas, we recommend sending them just before the cutoff dates.

Check out the following dates for both international and UK Christmas postings. If you’re sending packages to Asia, Australia, New Zealand, or Africa, the deadlines are this week—plan your visit to the Post Office ASAP. If you’re unsure of your nearest branch, you can use the handy branch finder tool on the Post Office website.

International Christmas Posting Dates

International Airmail including Airsure and International Signed For:

• Wednesday, December 4th: Asia, Far East (including Japan), New Zealand
• Thursday, December 5th: Australia
• Friday, December 6th: Africa, Caribbean, Central & South America, Middle East
• Monday, December 9th: Cyprus, Eastern Europe
• Tuesday, December 10th: Canada, France, Greece, Poland
• Friday, December 13th: USA
• Saturday, December 14th: Western Europe (excluding France, Greece, Poland)

UK Christmas Posting Dates

• Wednesday, December 18th: 2nd Class and Royal Mail Signed For
• Friday, December 20th: 1st Class and Royal Mail Signed For
• Monday, December 23rd: Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed

Remember, there will be no postal deliveries during the Christmas bank holidays, including Christmas Day, Boxing Day, and New Year’s Day. Normal service will resume on Friday, January 3rd, 2014.

Kite’s Last Order Dates

Kite Packaging, along with other packaging suppliers and manufacturers, takes a Christmas break from Christmas Eve through the New Year. Naturally, this affects our operations, meaning customers must place orders by certain dates to receive goods before Christmas. Orders placed after this time will still be accepted, but processing will only begin on Thursday, January 2nd, 2014.

Below are the final order dates for Kite’s website based on the chosen delivery method. Some of our specialized products have even earlier deadlines, with customized tape, for instance, unavailable after this Friday (December 6th) if you need it before Christmas. If you have any further questions, don’t hesitate to drop us an email.

Standard Order Dates

• Monday, December 16th by 4:30 PM: Out-of-area deliveries
• Wednesday, December 18th by 4:30 PM: Standard 2-4 day delivery orders
• Friday, December 20th by 4:30 PM: Next-day delivery and Saturday delivery orders

Normal service will resume on January 2nd for most products, but some items will have different order deadlines due to direct manufacturing. This helps keep costs low and ensures faster deliveries.

Specialist Products Order Dates

Printed Logo Tape

• Standard Delivery: December 6th
• Next Day Delivery: Not Available
• Normal Service Resumes: January 3rd

Pulp Bottle Packs – All Sizes

• Standard Delivery: December 18th
• Next Day Delivery: December 19th
• Normal Service Resumes: January 6th

Electronics Products – Anti-Static, VCI Products, and Corstat Boxes/Totes

• Standard Delivery: December 18th
• Next Day Delivery: December 19th
• Normal Service Resumes: January 2nd

Blister Packs

• Standard Delivery: December 18th
• Next Day Delivery: December 19th
• Normal Service Resumes: January 6th

Carton Sealing, Strapping, and Wrapping Machines

• Standard Delivery: December 18th
• Next Day Delivery: December 19th
• Normal Service Resumes: January 6th

Tamper-Evident Document Wallets

• Standard Delivery: December 17th
• Next Day Delivery: December 18th
• Normal Service Resumes: January 2nd

Cable Ties – Plastic and Steel

• Standard Delivery: December 17th
• Next Day Delivery: December 18th
• Normal Service Resumes: January 2nd

Full and Half Truck Loads of Bubble Wrap (Large and Small)

• Standard Delivery: December 13th
• Next Day Delivery: Not Available
• Normal Service Resumes: January 6th

Eco Flow Void Fill

• Standard Delivery: December 13th
• Next Day Delivery: Not Available
• Normal Service Resumes: January 6th

Shredding Machines

• Standard Delivery: December 18th
• Next Day Delivery: December 18th
• Normal Service Resumes: January 2nd

Thanks for joining us for today’s post! We wish you all the best with your Christmas shipping endeavors!