Missed seasonal delivery: what to tell customers
Tell each wholesale customer which order will miss its promised delivery, what is verified and what remains uncertain. Offer options with clear costs and decision deadlines, then seek written agreement on any revised delivery commitment. Factory evidence can be checked with Cambridge China Bridge.
Tell the customer what the delay means for their order
Contact affected customers as soon as you know the promised delivery will be missed. Identify the order reference, affected products and quantities, original delivery commitment and the seasonal selling window at risk. Ask for their latest useful arrival date and whether a smaller delivery would still help.
Give the verified position, the source and date of the evidence, and the outstanding uncertainty. Avoid forwarding an unsupported factory promise as your own delivery commitment. Use the factory-delay guide to establish the upstream facts; this guide covers what you then agree with your wholesale customer.
Separate a forecast from a delivery commitment
Explain whether your revised date refers to factory completion, dispatch or arrival at the customer's agreed delivery point. State which stages are confirmed and which depend on inspection, transport availability or clearance. Use the shipping planning guide to check the route before proposing a replacement arrival date.
If arrival cannot yet be supported, say so plainly. Give a dated next update and describe the evidence you are waiting for. Ask the customer to flag any promotion, warehouse booking or onward order that needs a decision before that update.
Offer options that still serve the season
Present only options you have checked: waiting for the complete order, receiving a usable portion, accelerating ready goods or accepting an approved substitute. Include proposed quantities, arrival estimates, extra costs, who would pay them and what would happen to the balance. A partial delivery is useful only if the customer can sell or use that portion.
Ask whether goods arriving after the season would still be wanted. If a reduction or cancellation is requested, review the actual contract and obtain appropriate advice before confirming the outcome. Keep that discussion separate from the factory's recovery proposal.
Set a decision deadline with a reason
Give each option a specific response date and time, including the time zone, based on a checked booking expiry, stock reservation or dispatch cut-off. Explain what becomes unavailable or needs repricing after that point. Allow the customer time to obtain internal approval, and name the person who should receive their decision.
State your proposed next action if no reply arrives: contact the customer again and recheck availability before making a fresh offer. Do not describe silence as acceptance of a revised delivery date. Distinguish the deadline for choosing an option from the time of your next status update.
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Record the changed commitment in writing
Review the business supply terms and follow the contract's amendment process when seeking agreement. Send a proposed amendment identifying the order, changed quantities, delivery date or window, delivery point, split-shipment balance, agreed costs and any changed payment arrangements. State which original terms you propose to retain.
Ask the customer's authorised contact to confirm the exact amendment in writing. Keep the proposal and confirmation together with the original order. Record any unresolved compensation or cancellation discussion separately, and avoid wording that suggests it has been settled. If the replacement commitment becomes doubtful, reopen the discussion promptly.
Frequently asked questions
What should I put in a late delivery email?
Identify the order, affected goods, original promise, verified status and uncertainty. Give checked options, costs, a reasoned decision deadline and the next update time.
Should I promise the factory's revised date?
Check what that date means. Factory completion does not establish customer arrival. Confirm the remaining stages before proposing a replacement delivery commitment.
What if my wholesale customer does not reply?
Follow up and recheck option availability. Keep the amendment awaiting confirmation; do not record silence as acceptance of a changed date.
What should a revised delivery agreement include?
The order reference, affected quantities, delivery date or window and place, balance schedule, agreed costs, payment changes and written confirmation from the customer's authorised contact.