11 July 2023 | Press release

Pickup unveils its latest innovation: the multi-service locker

At Vivatech 2023, Pickup, a subsidiary of La Poste group and France's largest network of parcel shops and lockers, with 16,000 parcel shops and 1,200 lockers, unveiled its latest innovation: the multi-service locker. Around a hundred of these new-generation lockers are due to be rolled out by 2024, in town centres in both large cities and smaller towns. It brings together traditional “dry” lockers and - a major innovation - refrigerated lockers, as well as a range of local services to simplify everyday life for everyone, including parcel collection and dispatch, click & collect of dry or fresh products from local shops, locker reservations by private individuals for key collection, item lending or delivery of second-hand goods, etc.

 

The multi-service locker, a global solution for the local ecosystem

The launch of the Pickup multi-service locker marks a major step forward in the development of out-of-home delivery solutions, which are expanding rapidly in France - in line with Geopost's out-of-home volumes, which have grown by 40% in 2022 as a whole.  This is the first scalable hybrid locker to include both conventional 'dry' lockers and refrigerated lockers (excluding frozen products), the number of which can vary according to local demand. The temperature of the chilled lockers is continuously monitored and can range from 2 to 8 degrees Celsius. 

Thanks to this special feature, the new Pickup locker can accommodate a wide variety of products in a single secure location that is accessible 24/7. Useful for customers of e-commerce sites as well as local residents and shopkeepers, the locker benefits the entire local ecosystem by providing a wide range of local services.

 

Click & Collect products from marketplaces or local shops

By 2022, 35% of regular European e-shoppers will have had food delivered to them.

The figure for France: 36%

Source: Geopost e-Shopper Barometer 2022

 

The food delivery market is booming. To meet these new expectations, Pickup is opening up its multi-service locker to food products, including fresh produce. The company has teamed up with epicery & Ma Ville Mon Shopping, two La Poste group’s start-ups, to offer consumers the option of picking up local produce in a multi-service locker.

These online sales platforms, which guarantee quality and expertise, offer products from local traders, producers, craftsmen and restaurateurs. This partnership means that both dry and fresh products (meat, fish, vegetables, ready meals, etc.) can be delivered to lockers and collected at the most convenient time and place for the customer. In addition to these two partners, Pickup's solution can be integrated with all types of marketplaces. Similarly, local retailers who are not listed on these platforms will also be able to use the locker to offer a Click & Collect service to their customers. They simply need to reserve a locker online, via a dedicated Pickup platform, to drop off the goods ordered by the customer earlier in the day. The multi-service locker provides a real link between e-commerce and local commerce, helping to facilitate trade between residents and retailers and boost local business.       

 

Reserving lockers to simplify trade and transactions for individuals

Pickup will also give private individuals the opportunity to reserve a locker in the locker to leave an item for a third party. This is a service that can prove useful on many occasions: whether it's to pass on house keys, to deliver a second-hand item, or to lend a tool to a relative... There are many possible uses for this service, as long as the product complies with the locker's general conditions of use. Lockers can be reserved online via a dedicated Pickup portal, with a maximum storage period of 5 days, and a price that should be around €1 per reservation. Once the item has been left in the locker, the recipient will be notified by e-mail and text message that the parcel is available. They can then collect it whenever they like, at their convenience. So there's no need to meet at a specific time and place to exchange, donate or sell items between private individuals. With this new type of asynchronous transaction, everyone works to their own schedule, gaining greater freedom and flexibility. It is a practical and original way of promoting the circular and   economy.

 

Parcel drop-off as well as collection

Like traditional lockers, the Pickup multi-service locker allows you to pick up Chronopost and Colissimo (and soon DPD France) parcels ordered from one of the 90,000 e-tailers offering the Pickup out-of-home delivery service, in just a few seconds. The new feature is that it now also includes parcel drop-off points (Chronopost, Colissimo and DPD France). Customers can therefore reserve a locker online to return an item or to send a parcel between private individuals.      

“At Pickup, our promise is based on being very close to our customers.  And we believe that lockers, as a complement to parcel shops, can play a key role in revitalising town centres by facilitating contact and exchanges between residents and retailers. That's why we're planning to roll out around a hundred lockers of this type by 2024. With the multi-service locker, we're broadening the scope of what's possible, taking proximity in the centre of towns and cities one step further”. 

Maxime d’Hauteville, Pickup Chairman

 

 

 

Pickup is reinventing its range of lockers

In line with this multi-service model, Pickup is constantly rethinking and enhancing its range of lockers to offer new services and formats in line with changing lifestyles and consumer habits. The company is also responding to the new constraints and demands of its customers and partners with:

 ·       More sustainable lockers: to reduce the energy consumption of its lockers, Pickup is developing new models, such as autonomous lockers powered by solar panels.

·       More modular lockers: which can be adapted to all types of environment. For example, Pickup offers "tiny" Pickup lockers with narrow columns that fit into narrow spaces where floor space is limited, or low-height lockers for low-ceilinged areas such as underground stations, car parks, etc.

·       Lockers for a wider variety of flows, with dedicated click and collect lockers, hybrid lockers including Pickup flows as well as those of the partner retailer or distributor, multi-carrier lockers or Maxi lockers, installed outdoors or in car parks, enabling customers to collect large parcels (such as bicycles, large household appliances, furniture, etc.).

 

                                                   

With 1,200 lockers to date, Pickup is continuing to expand its network with the aim of reaching 6,000 lockers in France by 2026.

 

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About Pickup

Pickup is a subsidiary of Groupe La Poste via its GeoPost division, and operates France’s leading parcel pick-up network, with 16,000 parcel shops and 1,200 lockers. The Pickup points receive daily deliveries from the carriers Colissimo, Chronopost and DPD France. Pickup point delivery is available from over
90,000 e-retailers, including: Vinted, Veepee, Showroomprivé, Sarenza, CDiscount, Zalando, Amazon, Orange, Nespresso, i.run, Sephora, Mango, Decathlon, and more. Pickup has also developed a wide range of solutions to meet the challenges of urban logistics, including in partnership with the retail and mass distribution sectors. Through the various entities of Geopost, La Poste group’s international parcel delivery network, which is the market leader in Europe, the Pickup network is also present in 30 countries around the world, with more than
90,000 pickup points. Pickup's head office is based in the Paris region and the company employs 400 people.

More information on the Pickup Internet site

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