For Nigerian online sellers, the period from Singles' Day on 11th November to Black Friday is a test of more than pricing. You need stock in place, a clear delivery promise and a way to keep orders moving when volumes rise. Here's what to tackle at each stage of the season.

Before Singles' Day: Get your stock moving

Singles' Day, or Double 11, began as an Alibaba promotion in 2009. Today, it signals the start of the year-end shopping peak. In 2025, sales on Chinese platforms ran from 9th October to 11th November.

If you source products from China, don't wait for Singles' Day to arrange your Black Friday restock. Goods still with your supplier on 11th November could be in transit during one of the busiest weeks of the year for international deliveries.

On Alibaba.com, a supplier or freight agent will often arrange shipping. Before accepting the lowest quote, check whether the delivery date works for your sale. If the stock is time-sensitive, ask your supplier to hand it to DHL Express using your own DHL account. You can book the import from Nigeria, select the service and track the shipment from pickup in China to delivery at your door. Larger consignments that can arrive after Black Friday may be better suited to air or ocean freight with DHL Global Forwarding.

Don't let paperwork slow down your restock. Your commercial invoice should describe every item clearly and specifically. "Women's cotton T-shirt" gives customs more useful information than "samples"; incomplete details can delay clearance.

Work out the full landed cost before you advertise a discount, too. Nigeria's duty-free threshold covers consignments worth $300 or less, subject to a limit of four importations per importer each year. Above that threshold, duty, VAT and levies may apply. Include those costs when setting your Black Friday prices so you know what each sale will earn.

With DHL On Demand Delivery, they can choose when and where their parcel arrives. That flexibility can help reduce missed deliveries and returns. Marking a home address as residential also enables email or SMS shipment updates, alongside the same delivery choices.

Check what you'll charge for shipping before the sale begins. DHL's 2026 Demand Surcharge applies to domestic Time Definite deliveries from 1st November to 31st December, and to international Time and Day Definite services from 1st October to 5th February 2027. Build the applicable cost into your pricing now rather than discovering after the sale that it has reduced your margin on every order.

This is also the time to connect your website or marketplace to DHL Express Commerce. It brings orders into your shipping workflow and lets you print labels as they come in. When sales surge, you can focus on getting parcels out instead of writing waybills one by one.

Black Friday week: Keep orders moving

Black Friday falls the day after US Thanksgiving, with the shopping rush continuing through Cyber Monday. During that period in 2025, our Express network handled around 20% more shipments than on an average day. Book pickups in MyDHL+ ahead of the rush so your packed orders are ready to move.

Packing well matters when you're sending hundreds of parcels, not just a handful. Use the smallest corrugated cardboard box that properly protects each order: a box that's too large for its contents may be charged by volumetric weight. Avoid round containers, shrink wrap, and bags with handles or straps, which may be treated as non-conveyable and attract a handling charge. Order DHL-branded boxes and flyers in advance so a shortage of supplies doesn't hold up dispatch.

Sending Black Friday orders abroad? Decide who pays duties and taxes at the destination. With Duty Tax Paid, those charges are billed to you rather than the buyer. It spares an international customer an unexpected bill at delivery, and the same goes for anyone receiving the order as a gift.

Publish your returns policy before the sale and make two things clear: how long customers have to return an item, and who pays for return shipping. Review missed deliveries, too. Each one can mean another delivery attempt and another "Where's my order?" message. Complete addresses and phone numbers at checkout give parcels a better start. On Demand Delivery gives customers more control over the final step.

Finally, look at what happened while the details are fresh. Which delivery options did shoppers choose? Where were parcels delayed? Which products sold out first? Use those answers to plan your Christmas restock. They'll also make next year's peak a little easier to manage.

Build a shipping setup you can use beyond Black Friday

A DHL business account brings the tools in this playbook together. You can book imports from suppliers, connect your store through DHL Express Commerce, offer customers On Demand Delivery and see your own rates when you get a quote in MyDHL+.

Business pricing is tailored to your shipping volume and profile, with savings of up to 85%, and there's no cost to open an account. A DHL Express Business Shipping Account lets you start shipping with a card; a Credit Business Account offers invoicing on credit terms.

The best time to prepare for a busy sales period is before the first order arrives. Open a DHL Express business account and put a shipping process in place that's ready for your next peak.

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