Pickup aims to roll out by the end of 2022 2,500 parcel boxes to facilitate drop-offs at pickup points

 

Parcel box for drop-offs: a service that makes life easier for customers and retail outlets

After the introduction of 170 parcel boxes at Carrefour in December 2020, Pickup is now continuing to roll out its solution on a larger scale. The network's ambition is to reach 2,500 parcel boxes in supermarkets and retail outlets by the end of 2022.

 

• Parcel box in a nutshell

 This solution aims to simplify parcel deliveries, both for the end customer and for partner retailers operating the Pickup point service.          

A simple concept: it is a box in which customers can drop off their parcels completely independently. The customer no longer has to ask the retailer for help. Instead, they just have to open the door that secures access to the box manually, slide in their parcel, and that's it.          

This also saves time for retailers, as parcels left in the parcel box do not have to be collected and scanned as they are received. The retailer can concentrate on their core business and only access the contents of the parcel box later, using a key that only they have.  They choose to collect, scan and store their parcels at the time they deem most convenient. A proof of drop-off is automatically sent by e-mail to the customer when the parcel is scanned. To be eligible for the service, the parcel must not exceed 20 litres (the equivalent of two shoeboxes), and must be a Shop2Shop by Chronopost: a service that allows individuals to send goods from one pickup point to another from a C2C sales platform (Vinted, for example) or on shop2shop.fr.

 

• Where the boxes will be rolled out

The new parcel boxes will soon be available at major retailers, such as Carrefour, but also at Pickup points. Each box can hold up to 20 parcels. Requiring no construction work or wiring, they will be positioned inside the shops and in the immediate vicinity of the reception area in order to guarantee the safety of the parcels. For optimal security, the door also has an anti-kickback device, preventing the customer from accessing other parcels when dropping them off.

By accelerating the roll-out of this service, Pickup is responding to the exponential growth of the second-hand market, estimated at €7 billion in France*, as well as to the ever-increasing number of online purchases, which in turn means an increase in the number of e-commerce returns... Two trends that logically make the issue of parcel drop-offs by end-consumers even more central.  

 

"Pickup's network has been present for 20 years in all types of shops throughout France. It is a clear indicator of the changes in commerce and e-commerce. In this context, Pickup is convinced that physical commerce can benefit from the new digital consumer practices by using the strength of its proximity to the end customer.”  

Olivier Titeux, Sales Director, Pickup

New Pickup visual identity: the result of a win-win strategy with customers and Pickup points

The new Pickup parcel box, with its yellow, blue and white hues, will be a good illustration of the new Pickup identity. New logo, new colours, new graphic codes... Pickup has a new look for greater visibility and legibility of its network of 16,000 pickup points and 600 lockers: a network that is unrivalled in France!   

The aim is to establish itself as a brand that is once again familiar to the general public, a brand directly associated with the out-of-home parcel business in the mind of the customer, and more broadly, a first choice player in parcel delivery and collection. 

 

"We have built a simple, coherent and powerful brand architecture to better integrate Pickup into the La Poste network of contact points. This strong identity will enable us to improve the visibility, legibility and consistency of our services for a seamless customer experience across all our contact points.”

Maxime d’Hauteville, Chairman, Pickup

In addition to the customer benefit, this brand change is the result of a win-win strategy with positive repercussions on the entire ecosystem. Indeed, this new identity will also contribute to the attractiveness of Pickup's points and services, thereby promoting business for its relays and partners.

* Source: study conducted by  Tripartie in 2021

 

 

About Pickup

Pickup is a subsidiary of Le Groupe La Poste and through its subsidiary GeoPost/DPDgroup, it operates La Poste's parcel pickup-point network and is the market leader in France with 16,000 pickup points and 600 lockers. The Pickup points receive daily deliveries from the carriers Colissimo, Chronopost and DPD France. The Pickup-point delivery service is proposed by more than 10,000 online retailers: Vinted, Veepee, Showroomprivé, Sarenza, CDiscount, Zalando, Amazon, Orange, Nespresso, i.run, Sephora, Mango, Decathlon and more. Pickup is also developing numerous solutions to meet the challenges of urban logistics and last-mile delivery, particularly in partnership with the retail and mass distribution sectors. The Pickup network is also present in 31 countries around the world - with a total of almost 70,000 points - through the various entities of DPDgroup, Le Groupe La Poste's international parcel delivery network, which is the market leader in Europe. Pickup's head office is based in the Paris region and the company employs 350 people.

For more information, please visit the Pickup website

 

 

[1] FEVAD 2021 E-commerce report

[2] DPDgroup 2021 e-shopper barometer