For the first time in its 360-year history, Post Office will be providing non-Royal Mail services over the counter at its branches by partnering with leading carriers DPD and Evri. Ending Royal Mail exclusivity will give more choice to customers, meeting their needs in a competitive parcels market while creating more opportunities for Postmasters.
The end of Royal Mail exclusivity at the Post Office has been a long time coming, and couldn’t be worse timing for Royal Mail who, along with other carriers, are already worried about Peak Volumes and if their network will be under capacity this Christmas… which means a massive financial hit.
For consumers, it’s brilliant news as for too long they have been charged top prices for parcels, whether that be Royal Mail or Parcelforce, compared to those available to any savvy enough to shop around online. We’ll be watching to see what the Post Office tariffs are for DPD and Evri and how they compare to purchasing online. But this can only be a good thing for making more competitive prices and different service offerings available.
The new buy-in-branch parcel service will begin in selected branches in time for the peak Christmas delivery season, complementing the recent launch of Parcels Online which enables customers to compare and purchase postage online for drop-off in Post Offices.
The announcement ending Royal Mail exclusivity marks the continued diversification of Post Office as it evolves to become a one-stop hub for customers and a destination where they can access multiple delivery carriers all under one roof.
In chosen branches, Post Office customers will be able to walk up to a counter and choose to send their parcels with DPD or Evri, in addition to existing services, so they can choose the delivery carrier which best suits their needs.
According to new research commissioned by Post Office, 76% of the UK population send parcels each year. More than one in three (37%) tend to shop around to find the best delivery deals while almost half (48%) wish there were more delivery providers available to choose from at one location when they are posting parcels.
The announcement, which comes in the run-up to the busy Christmas period highlights new research showing that 40% of people admit sending parcels at Christmas can be stressful as they worry that it could get lost (47%) or won’t arrive in time (43%). 84% UK adults consider Post Office as a reliable place for their parcels to be dropped off, so this new service aims to help further reassure customers when sending parcels at this time of year.
DPD and Evri have chosen to partner with Post Office because they have the UK’s largest network and Post Office branches are seen as a trusted and safe place to go for parcels, handling millions of parcels every week.
The launch will not only benefit customers by providing greater parcel carrier choice, Postmasters will also reap the rewards of this new service as customers realise all their mails and parcels needs can be met in their local branch.
We are fundamentally transforming Post Office by introducing new mails carriers for over-the-counter sales for the first time in our 360 year history. This expanded partnership with DPD and Evri shows how we are disrupting the mails market to offer greater choice for customers and more opportunities for Postmasters as we build a Post Office fit for the future.
– Nick Read, CEO, Post Office
Post Office is innovating to meet changing customer preferences and the increasingly competitive market. Our goal is to deliver unparalleled access to parcel services, addressing the needs of businesses and retail customers, both now and in the future.
Our new buy-in-branch service reflects how Post Office has adapted as a business to ensure our customers now have access to multiple delivery carriers and services conveniently in their local Post Office. It’s very exciting to have major carriers DPD and Evri as our launch partners for this new service which will be rolled out across branches over the coming months. We will continue to innovate to provide a broader range of options to suit customer needs through our extensive network.
Our buy-in-branch parcel service will not only widen delivery choice for our customers but our in-person service provided by our dedicated Postmasters will also give them additional peace-of-mind knowing their parcels will be taken care of and arrive safely.
Our ongoing partnership with Royal Mail remains of utmost significance to us, and this announcement further enhances the Post Office’s pivotal role as an indispensable one-stop hub for communities where our valued customers can confidently participate in a wide array of face-to-face transactions, all while enjoying the exceptional assistance and support we provide.
– Neill O’Sullivan, Managing Director of Parcels and Mails, Post Office
Buy-in-branch extends our working relationship with the Post Office and will help provide more choice and convenience for UK parcel shippers. DPD parcel recipients can already collect their parcels from Post Office branches and regard them as safe and trusted locations for a wide range of services. The new service will help reinforce the unique position the branches have and, for the first time, give face-to-face parcel customers genuine choice over how they ship.
– Elaine Kerr, CEO, DPD UK
We’re committed to delivering a high-quality, convenient, and reliable service and this partnership offers our cost-effective options, with great quality benefits such as tracking as standard, within the Post Office’s expansive network to reach more communities. We deliver over 730 million parcels each year and as well as offering domestic services, which sees us deliver to almost every household in the UK, our international services will be available at selected Post Office counters.
– Martijn de Lange, CEO, Evri
Providing multiple carrier options in our branches is essential for our customers. We’ve seen a broader demographic coming through our doors since partnering with Evri and DPD for PUDO and Parcels Online, and it’s made a significant difference. With the new buy-in-branch service, we can finally offer our customers the convenience of choosing from a range of carriers, all in one place. This not only simplifies their lives but also brings more traffic to the high streets, potentially boosting local businesses. With this new service, we’ll never have to do that again. It’s a win-win for everyone, from providing more choices to improving customer experiences and making our branches even more central to our communities.
– Elliot Jacobs, Postmaster and Non-executive Director, Post Office
This launch forms part of Post Office’s broader Mails Strategy which has already introduced thousands of new carrier opportunities across its unparalleled UK branch network, including Click & Collect, Customer Drop Off and Customer Return points, as well as extending its offering online with the launch of Parcels Online earlier this year.
Providing multi-carrier omni-channel services highlights how Post Office is adapting to changing consumer demands and continuing to reach and deliver to the needs of all a wide range of personal and business customers. The launch of buy-in-branch realises the benefits and value of face-to-face interactions with experienced, knowledgeable Postmasters when sending parcels, something that is important to half (51%) of parcel senders across the nation – equivalent to over 25 million people.
5 Responses
The sad part is Royal Mail may actually be better than Evri and Yodel for parcels.
They cost more, but I wouldn’t say they are worse.
DPD is a lot better but costs quite a bit more. So of course for 1-2kg they become to expensive for most sales.
I have listened to the some of the parcel prices been quoted to people in the long drawn out process at the post office and seen a few fall over at the prices. Less and less are using them all the time. Their behaviour to business and personal customers was a disgrace last Christmas.
Royal Mail are STILL not listening, same problems persist. I got off the phone with them about the zero delivery scans last week the other day for LL . “Can you spend your time sending us a email with all the names and addresses to investigate.” Am like just make the postie’s do their job. I know the zebra scanners are a pain but we never had 1 single scan.
I read others having problems with Evri. Cant say I have and I send loads with them now and Dpd for a few bits, and Yodal unfortunately for NI.
The nursery nurses say to our kids when they are being bold ” put your listening ears on” maybe it is time RMG put their listening ears on before they go totally busy.
The non-scanning of large letters is a nationwide issue and a disgrace. I wanted to find out how common it is, so I went through my latest Amazon VTR report this week. I was pretty sure just by looking at the order values they would almost all be large letters. Upon checking against the orders, 95% of them were.
My amazon VTR (valid tracking rate) is currently at 78%. To get 100%, all orders would require just one carrier scan, so you get some idea of the scale of things. Over 20%, or 1 in 5, failed to get scanned. These non-scans are all Royal Mail, almost all large letter. Roughly 50% of my Amazon sales are large letter, so it is actually worse than 1 in 5. It’s more like 2 in 5 large letters are not getting scanned, which is 40%, getting close to being 50/50 whether they do a scan or not. And this is countrywide. The postcodes showed that. It wasn’t isolated to one bad area.
I’d love to hear how Royal Mail can explain this away. If it was random forgetfulness, flat scanner batteries or some other unfortunate event, then it would be spread over parcels and large letters alike. But to me, it looks very deliberate. Either it is unofficial policy, or they are overlooking the posties who are deciding themselves to do it.
The Zebra Scanners are awful in the rain they just do not function properly at all that will explain the odd issue, but not what is actually happening.
If a handset is charged overnight it will function for scanning all day not a problem if they are using it for more power hungry apps like sat navs more of an issue (they should have docks in the vans).
In reality it is simply Post Workers not doing the job. I know a fair few and they have all been well briefed and know they are supposed to scan barcode mail.
The excuse I got was it must be a “training issue” Am like well it is Nationwide then.
Once we complaining about lack of scans
RM actually used the scanners battery could be flat as an excuse