As we approach the festive season once again, industry talk focuses (again) on the issue of HGV driver shortages and the potential problems that may cause to both the industry and indeed, to deliveries of goods over the Christmas period.
Because, as we mentioned on this site only a month ago, with a UK retail market so reliant on road freight for delivery of goods, a significant shortage of drivers could have major repercussions on the Christmas shopping market.
Of course, this is not just a Christmas problem, but so busy is the shopping season around this time of year, that the issue is heightened and more widely recognised than at other times of the year.
Because delivery lorries are a part of Christmas; a symbol of approaching festivities that we all relate to and grow increasingly familiar with.
How do we know this?
The Coca-Cola Lorry
That’s right, if you want to know the importance of lorries to our society, our economy and the way we receive our stuff then you only need to watch the TV from mid-November onwards. That’s when the familiar song / chant can be heard, the excited faces can be seen on adults and kids alike and, of course, the sight of that big looming red truck, replete with twinkling lights, rolls into view.
The Coca-Cola lorry itself.
For twenty years this has been one of the premier beacons of the Christmas build-up. The sign that, as the song itself tells us:
“The Holiday’s are coming.”
You see, the implication is clear – so clear in fact that the advertisers use it a sign of the season. We need our lorries to provide us with things we want at the important times.
The Coca-Cola lorry – known also as the Christmas caravan – has become a part of our pre-Christmas culture both here in the UK, the USA (of course) and across the world. The now iconic imagery of the advert appearing on our screens in the month long build up to the holiday season; broadcast in over 100 countries on all continents and in all manner of different languages.
And the idea of this lorry as a symbol of Christmas is only growing more prominent. In the run up to Christmas this year you can even make a date to go and see the big red truck as it tours around the country; stopping off in villages, towns and cities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland; from Cornwall to the Highlands.
And it’s not the only lorry this Christmas
What’s more, to further add grist to the idea that lorries are an essential part of how we receive our festive goodies – now we have the addition of the Cadbury’s lorry as well. Although Cadbury’s are slightly different – playing on the notion of their famous advent calendars. In this case, we see an entire fleet of lorries taking to the road, ensuring that all parts of the country a well-stocked with quality chocolate this holiday season; before re-converging back together to form a giant, lorry based advent calendar.
So, with our Coca-Cola lorry and our Cadbury fleet taking high prominence in the adverts we watch, the notion that Christmas might not quite be Christmas without sufficient delivery trucks is alive and well in the media.
Now isn’t that reason enough to get on board and start a new career behind the wheel of your own lorry next year?