DPD recently announced that they have recruited some 6000 new staff to help meet the demand from online shopping during what is the ‘new normal’.
Their parcel numbers have increased dramatically as a result of the pandemic and this has been mirrored by almost all other couriers.
There is no real surprise that online shopping has grown dramatically during the last few months. Many online retailers and eCommerce websites have also seen their sales grow substantially.
The question on everyone’s lips is, will this continue when the shops are open.
We think so….
There is undoubtedly concern amongst the public. I for one am not overly excited about heading into a shopping mall or busy town centre any time soon. I’ve also found other things to do with my time. We once headed to the shops for something to do, but now take more walks, visit the beach more, spend more time with family and we are even starting to have friends around again.
So am I happy to spend a few quid to get an item delivered to my house? I sure am. It’s the same price as parking anyway.
Not all of us are the same however, there are no doubt people that crave the physical shops and enjoy the process. But it will certainly be a slow return to the high street.
Also, lets not forget that eCommerce gained a whole new online customer base during the first half of 2020. A customer base who have been forced into buying online it and now actually quite like it.
Back to DPD. Who even before lockdown, had announced that demand for their seven day a week, nationwide next-day delivery service had risen significantly as people started increasing their reliance on online shopping. The leading courier (one of our chosen delivery partners) are ‘forecasting the growth to continue this year’, and we definitely agree.
Much like DPD, we have experienced similar growth in volume, akin to the volumes we are used to experiencing in peak seasons across our fulfilment operation. We’ve had to adjust; investing in new technology and staff, along with the reworking of a collection of processes and functions in order to pick, pack and despatch more parcels in a faster time, without impacting on the quality and accuracy.
If your online business has seen growth and you need to outsource some or all of the fulfilment please get in touch with our team today to discuss your individual needs.
contact us on 01903 751100 or email info@ukpickandpack.com
