23% increase in brands using CollectPlus for the period Now handling over 250,000 parcels a week

Watford, 21 November 2013: CollectPlus, the largest store-based parcel delivery service in the UK has announced that it has further increased its parcel volumes and is now handling 5.7m million transactions a year, helping increase revenue growth to £14.3 million for the first six months of the year.

CollectPlus now works with over 260 retail brands, which is a 23% increase in clients taking up CollectPlus’ services since the end of the last financial year (ended 31stMarch 2013).  New returns Clients include Estee Lauder, Fat Face, Urban Outfitters and Ted Baker.  This period also saw retailers such as River Island, The White Company and Superdry offer their customers a local Click and Collect service for the first time, with John Lewis trialling the collection service in 1,500 CollectPlus stores.  Industry research from the IMRG currently estimates that Click and Collect services account for over 46m parcels a year across the United Kingdom and this is set to grow to 165m parcels by 2017.

Neil Ashworth, CEO of CollectPlus, says of the results:

“CollectPlus continues to go from strength to strength as more and more consumers and brands are seeing the value of our pioneering parcel collections and returns service. This has helped us become a market leader in this sector and a clear alternative to home delivery or the Post Office. This continuing strong growth has helped the business move into profitability for the first time since we were formed and are now handling in excess of 250,000 parcels a week.”

Today’s interim results have been helped by additional investment in CollectPlus’ network of stores, which today stands at over 5,500 which is a 10% increase on last year. This growth has been made possible by the strength and breadth of PayPoint’s network of 34,000 stores nationwide.

Unlike the Post Office, most shops offering CollectPlus are open seven days a week and for longer than traditional opening hours. With 40% of CollectPlus’ users sending or dropping off parcels outside traditional opening hours, the service solves a long-term problem for consumers.

CollectPlus has recently enhanced its criteria for selecting stores with the aim of providing the highest level of convenience to its customers. The new criteria ensures that the network is even more accessible, has increased capacity for parcel storage and offers the best possible in-store experience.

Neil Ashworth continues:

“We know that people want a service that fits in with their lifestyles and offers them a local collection point service. We will continue to expand our network across the UK to give customers what they want, namely a convenient location to pick up or send a parcel. We will also continue to work closely with our partners to ensure we offer them innovative solutions that can help create a great customer experience when buying or returning something from that brand.”

CollectPlus is a joint venture between PayPoint, the UK’s leading retail payment network, and the UK’s leading parcel delivery company, Yodel.

ENDS

Notes to editors

For more information or to speak to Neil Ashworth of CollectPlus please contact the CollectPlus Press Office on:

T: 0207 025 6500
E: [email protected]

ABOUT COLLECTPLUS

CollectPlus is a delivery and returns service giving online shoppers’ the choice to collect and drop off parcels at local convenience stores. Founded in 2009, it answers a clear need for a modern alternative to the Post Office that is convenient and easy to use.

The success of the innovative model is reflected in the 260 retail brands that CollectPlus provides returns solutions for. Delivery to local store, “Click&Collect+”, is provided to a rising number of retailers from Amazon to House of Fraser and ASOS to Very.co.uk. This complements the returns offer that CollectPlus provides to retailers, offering a complete delivery and returns service. CollectPlus also offers the option for UK residents to drop off eBay items to buyers, or presents to friends and family at their local CollectPlus stores for delivery to any UK address.

With a network of over 5,500 shops open early ‘till late seven days a week; 87% of the UK population already live within a mile of a CollectPlus shop in urban areas and 88% within five miles in rural areas.