Bengaluru: Companies are gearing up for a stronger festive hiring season this year despite persistent geopolitical uncertainty, with temporary recruitment expected to exceed last year's levels by 8-25% as employers lock in talent ahead of the country's biggest consumption period.

Staffing and talent firms, including Quess, Randstad, TeamLease Services, Adecco, CIEL HR and ManpowerGroup, said the conflict in West Asia has had little impact on employers' festive workforce plans. Several companies have started planning earlier than usual to secure talent for the crucial August-December period.

Hiring is being driven by resilient domestic consumption, continued expansion in organised retail, ecommerce and quick commerce, and a growing preference for flexible workforce models to meet seasonal demand. Ecommerce, quick commerce, logistics, warehousing, FMCG and FMCD companies continue to lead festive hiring, while hospitality, manufacturing and BFSI are also adding to demand.

"We expect the festive hiring season to remain positive, with temporary staffing demand projected to grow by 15-20% year-on-year," said Deepesh Gupta, head of general staffing at Adecco India. "Businesses are entering the season with healthy hiring intent, supported by resilient consumer demand and the need to build workforce capacity to manage peak operational volumes."

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While estimates vary across firms, all expect hiring to exceed last year's levels. "Open mandates in the organised staffing sector point to roughly 8% to 10% more positions than the same window in 2025, which makes this a growth season," said Nitin Dave, CEO of staffing at Quess Corp.

The strongest demand, he said, is from large ecommerce and quick commerce platforms and their logistics partners. The festive season accounts for 40-60% of annual sales for many companies, prompting them to push harder than ever to make it a success.

"Companies recognise that the festive season will be critical for business performance this year, and that is reflected in their hiring plans," said Aditya Narayan Mishra, MD & CEO, CIEL HR. "Companies have largely stayed committed to their seasonal workforce requirements, and several have actually expanded into new markets, resulting in significantly higher hiring than last year."

While frontline roles remain broadly similar to last year, with delivery executives, warehouse associates, pickers and packers, retail sales associates and customer support staff in high demand, staffing firms are reporting a sharp increase in hiring for fulfilment, inventory management and dark store roles.

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"There is a noticeable increase in demand for specialised operational roles, particularly in manufacturing, quick commerce and supply chain management. Employers are also looking for candidates with digital proficiency, such as those comfortable using warehouse management systems, handheld devices and inventory management tools," said Yeshab Giri, chief commercial officer, operational talent solutions, at talent company Randstad India, which expects temp hiring to jump by 20-25% year-on-year.

Growth is also accelerating beyond the metros.

"While cities like Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata and Pune continue to account for a significant share of demand, there is strong growth across tier-2 and tier-3 cities as organised retail, ecommerce and quick commerce expand their footprint," said Balasubramanian A, senior vice-president, TeamLease Services.

“Overall, tier-2 and tier-3 markets are expected to grow faster than metros on a percentage basis,” he added

Shailesh Khanna, business leader, ManpowerGroup India, echoed the trend. "Tier 2 cities are expected to witness the strongest growth in festive hiring. Sector-wise, quick-commerce companies are expected to witness the fastest growth, with plans to increase their seasonal workforce by 40-60% to meet festive demand."