Retailers do not yet know if they will face a new tax on online deliveries after the suggested measure was absent from today’s Budget. There have been rumours of such a tax since last summer with the idea resurfacing in national press at the weekend. Mona Bitar, EY UK & (more…)
Whistl has promoted Michael Boulton to the position of managing director international at the firm. He has previously held a variety of sales and development roles during his last six years at Whistl and has also helped to drive the company’s international expansion. His most recent role has seen him (more…)
While the rise in parcel delivery is obvious given the impact of the pandemic, latest figures from DPD show that B2C delivery in particular saw a big rise in 2020. DPD’s 2020 year-end results, announced today, showed that it delivered 1.9 billion parcels worldwide in 2020, the equivalent of 7.5 (more…)
DX is to invest £4 million over the next six months, completing a £10 million investment programme it started in 2019. The programme has focused on improving IT systems, expanding and upgrading the group’s networks and further sortation mechanisation at its hubs and depots. £2.7 million was invested in the (more…)
Outdoor retailer Mountain Warehouse has signed a new ten-year open book contract with logistics supplier Clipper, which will begin this spring. Operating from Clipper’s Peterborough distribution centre, Clipper will provide services including order fulfilment and returns management for Mountain Warehouse. The contract will make use of Clipper’s automation and robotics (more…)
Home improvement giant Wickes has signed a new, three-year delivery contract with CitySprint, extending a partnership which first began in 2016. The company will provide single and two-person local delivery services of stock held in more than 200 Wickes stores in the UK, delivered in pre-advised delivery windows to customers (more…)
Online florist Bloom & Wild has launched a same day delivery service across London working with On the dot. The move comes ahead of longer term plans to launch a same day delivery service across other UK and European cities. The retailer chose On the dot after a five vendor (more…)
With Black Friday done and Christmas now already less than a month away peak operations really are now in force. This week has seen Hermes make its Christmas delivery guarantee for the sixth year running as it pledges to deliver customers parcels in time for Christmas or it will refund (more…)
Click and collect provider Doddle has seen a 115% uplift in Black Friday parcel volumes, the company says. Volumes on Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th were up 216% on the week before as a result of the Black Friday effect, compared to 101% last year. Volumes from the Monday before Black Friday to the (more…)
Hermes has recommitted to its money back delivery guarantee for Christmas for the sixth year running. The company pledges that all purchases will be delivered before Christmas Day or the delivery charge will be refunded. The terms of the commitment apply to each individual parcel that enters the Hermes network, (more…)
Pets at Home is working on a two-phase automation project at its distribution centre in Northampton. The first phase, which launches at the end of this month, will see a self-contained boxing process introduced to automate the dispensing of flea treatment on subscription. The second phase will see the introduction (more…)
Argos has added 100 extra Argos collections points in Sainsbury’s stores and opened 14 more Argos stores inside Sainsbury’s supermarkets to cope with the peak rush. The company has also opened a new regional fulfilment centre in Croydon in a £2.5 million investment. The new 69,000 sq. ft. facility will (more…)
Parcel carrier Yodel has invested more than £1 million in a new bespoke semi-automated sort facility which will process bulky or delicate parcels which previously had to be handled by hand. The new facility, dubbed Merlin, has gone live at the company’s Wednesbury sort centre which can handle around 17,000 (more…)
Amazon warehouses could be hit by worker walkouts tomorrow with plans by GMB members to demonstrate at five Amazon warehouses across the country. A number of protests are planned against what GMB, the union which represents Amazon workers, claims are ‘inhuman conditions’. Action will take place at the company’s warehouses (more…)
It may still officially be two days away but for most retailers the Black Friday promotions have already started – fuelled both by consumer desire to bag the bargains early but also tactical planning by retailers stretching out the promotion to relieve the pressure on their delivery supply chains. It (more…)
AO World has placed a continued focus on its third-party logistics business in the last six months as it begins trials to deliver non-electrical products and leverage its green van fleet. Speaking at its interim financial results for the six months ended 30 September 2018 this week the company said (more…)
Parcelforce Worldwide has unveiled its Christmas advert for 2018. The ad has been designed to illustrate the importance of knowing the last posting dates for Christmas and follows the story of a young girl getting a Christmas gift to her grandma in Florida. In the two minute ad the little (more…)
The UK logistics property market continues to outperform, according to new research from real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield. The company’s research showed that in Q3 total take-up reached 6.5 million sq ft, up 43% on the same period in 2017. The report revealed that an increase in speculative (more…)
Blockchain could prove hugely beneficial to improving accuracy and efficiency within the logistics market, according to James Robbins, CIO of ArrowXL. Here he explains how. Whilst those professionals working within the logistics sector will be very familiar with the inner workings of the supply chain, they may struggle when asked to (more…)
When looking to grow a retail business a focus on delivery processes can help, according to Neil Cotty, CEO of Global Freight Solutions. It’s no secret that the retail sector, particularly the high-street, has faced significant disruption over the past few years. As technology continues to develop, and our lives (more…)