🔥 Best Commodities, Lanes & Strategies for Holiday Season (For New & Growing Dispatchers)⬇️

Hey everyone, wanted to drop a breakdown that'll help a LOT of new dispatchers as we roll into the holiday season. You know, this is when freight gets weird, rates spike in random places, drivers disappear, brokers get cranky, and the load boards turn into the Wild West

So here's what actually matters:

🚛 Best Commodities During the Holidays

Holidays = consumer demand → stores stocking up → food + retail flying off shelves.

Top-paying & high-volume commodities:

Retail freight: Walmart, Target, Amazon, distribution centers

Sugar, beverages & snacks

Holiday food items (turkeys, produce, frozen goods)

E-commerce overflow freight

Packaging materials - boxes, pallets, wrapping

Electronics (Q4 inventory push)

Best trucks for these:

Reefers → strongest demand (food/frozen loads)

Dry Vans → insane volume-retail

Box Trucks → seasonal retail & final-mile

Hotshots → fast/urgent freight when retailers run short

Flatbeds, step decks, RGNs & open deck CAN get loads - but holidays favor consumer freight, not construction.

📍 Best States for Inbound & Outbound Holiday

Freight Strong outbound freight (easy to book loads):

CA (LA, Fresno, Stockton) - imports & retail

TX (Dallas, Houston, San Antonio) – food + warehouses

GA (Atlanta) - distribution heaven

IL (Chicago) – Midwest hub

PA/NJ – East Coast ports

FL - strong inbound + seasonal retail outbound

Strong inbound freight (pays more to get INTO these states):

FL, AZ, CO, CA → vacation states everybody wants to deliver to them, not from them

Northwest: WA/OR → demand spikes, but lower outbound

Translation:

Trucks leaving FL, CO, AZ, often take a hit. Trucks going TO these states get higher RPM.

🔥 Best Lanes (Holiday Season RPM Averages)

Averages vary, but these numbers are realistic for Q4

Dry Van (VAN)

Midwest → East Coast: $2.00–$2.70 RPM

Southeast → Midwest: $2.20–$2.80 RPM

West → Midwest: $1.80–$2.40 RPM

Reefer (REFR)

Holiday strongest equipment.

Midwest → East Coast: $2.80–$4.00 RPM

TX → Midwest: $2.60–$3.50 RPM

West Coast Produce: $3.00–$4.50+ RPM

Flatbed / Open Deck

Southeast → Midwest: $2.50–$3.50 RPM

Midwest → TX: $2.70–$3.80 RPM

Hotshot

Most lanes: $1.60–$2.40 RPM

RGN / Step Deck

Heavy haul slows down slightly in holidays

Expect: $3.00–$4.00+ RPM depending on load type

(Big machinery usually stops until after Q1.)

🧠 Which Truck Type Thrives the Most During Holidays?

From strongest to weakest:

Reefers: food, frozen goods, high demand

Dry Vans (retail + e-commerce)

Box Trucks/Hotshots: quick gap-fill loads

Flatbeds

Step Deck / RGN

Flatbeds drop when construction slows down, weather hits, and big projects pause.

📦 How Dispatchers Should Prepare for Holiday Season

Here's the part most new dispatchers miss:

1️⃣ Stay ahead of your drivers

Holidays = packed warehouses → LONG wait times.

Book early. Double confirm every appointment.

2️⃣ Build your broker relationships NOW

By mid-December, brokers ONLY call dispatchers they trust.

Be that person.

3️⃣ Price higher. Everything takes longer.

Detention, traffic, weather, slower docks…

Don't be shy about asking for more.

4️⃣ Know which carriers hate holidays

Some drivers go home early.

Some want max miles.

Know which is which.

5️⃣ Track the weather like a meteorologist

Snow storms = high rates + emergency freight.

6️⃣ Have back-up lanes prepared

If one lane slows, pivot fast.

💰 Minimum Rate Per Mile You Should Ask For (Holidays)

These are reasonable expectations to protect trucks:

Dry Van: $2.00+ RPM minimum

Reefer: $2.50–$3.00+ RPM minimum

Flatbed: $2.40+ RPM minimum Step Deck/RGN: $3.00+ RPM minimum

Hotshot: $1.80+ RPM minimum

Holiday season=trucks shouldn't move cheap unless it's strategy, not desperation.

🎯 Final Thoughts:

Holidays are chaotic…. But chaos = money for dispatchers who plan ahead.

If you understand demand, lanes and equipment strengths, you will thrive when everyone else is complaining about the boards being "dead."

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