Record number of transactions in Aalsmeer on May 26

In May, Mother’s Day in the Netherlands and France generated extra demand, with Tuesday 26 May standing out in particular as a record number of transactions were recorded in Aalsmeer. The total supply was slightly lower than in May last year, partly because there were two fewer auction days this year. Despite this, the availability of logistic means was well organised, with a sufficient supply of packaging and empty pallet trolleys.

The two extra early auction days during these weeks proved valuable, helping to spread demand more evenly and subsequently ensure that buyers were supplied on time as far as possible. At the same time, there was an additional increase in supply at Aalsmeer in May, which put pressure on on-time delivery and its predictability for buyers on some days. For flowers at Aalsmeer, 96.4% were ultimately delivered within the time slot chosen by the buyer or by the cut-off time, while for plants this figure was 98.2%. Overall, delivery reliability was in line with May last year, with the majority of transactions delivered without complaints: Aalsmeer 99.8%, Naaldwijk 99.7% and Rijnsburg 99.7%.

RFH is aware that later cut-off times and delivery orders have an impact on buyers and their processes, such as putting extra pressure on them to ensure their transporters leave on time. “We regret this and are therefore taking various measures during the peak period to maintain delivery reliability as high as possible and to forecast expected delivery times as accurately as possible. We are constantly reviewing our logistics process for areas of improvement and working to address them,” said the company in a statement.

Several aspects of operations performed well during the period. Delivery reliability remained high in terms of the number of transactions delivered without complaints, and there was good availability of transport packaging including packages and empty pallet trolleys. Pricing also improved compared to the same period last year, up 3.0% across clock and direct sales, despite a slightly lower overall supply of 1.6%.

There were, however, areas that fell short of expectations. Five clock malfunctions occurred, including one major incident, resulting in an auction uptime percentage of 98.68% for May. An increasing share of supply is shifting to Aalsmeer at the expense of Rijnsburg and Naaldwijk, leading to unused capacity at those locations while creating additional logistical pressure at Aalsmeer. This brings with it a risk of delivery delays and added pressure on buyers to ensure their lorries depart on time. Accurately forecasting the volume of work and estimated completion times on busy days also remains an area in need of improvement.