French B2C parcels operator Relais Colis and the delivery start-up Deliver.ee have teamed up to test a new delivery service offering customers the option to get parcels delivered to a Relais Colis parcel shop and then to their homes if they wish.
The service “Relais chez vous” (parcel shop at your home) has been initially made available for customers of the retailers La Redoute and Cdiscount. Since the beginning of November, it allows Parisians with busy schedules to get their online orders arriving at Relais Colis delivered where and when they want without having to pick up their parcel themselves.
The pilot project has been initially set up for one month enabling private individuals to profit from a flexible and rapid delivery service combining the freedom of parcel shop delivery and the convenience of home delivery.
With the new service, busy Parisians can get their parcel delivered by a Deliver.ee courier to the address and at the time of their choice within Paris (including in the evenings and on the weekends) on the same day or next day after the parcel has arrived at the Relais Colis shop. They will be informed by mail about the arrival of their parcel at the shop and the possibility to register for the additional home delivery service. Once registered, they enter the desired address and delivery time slot.
The subscribers then pay for home delivery at the Deliver.ee website and give the authorisation to the Deliver.ee courier to pick up the parcel from a Relais Colis shop via a secret code and a double-signature of the courier via the scanner at the shop and his/her smartphone.
The parcel shop operator Relais Colis explained that picking up a parcel can be a challenge for many urban residents due to various professional and family commitments. This is despite the flexible working hours of the Relais Colis shops (until midnight at some locations) and their close proximity (100% of the population lives within less than five minutes from a parcel shop in Paris).
Founded in 2013, Deliver.ee describes itself as ‘the first national network of urban couriers’ and operates in 10 major cities. It clinched a big-name customer last December when leading bookstore chain FNAC signed up the company to provide its new ‘3-hour express’ service in Paris and surrounding areas. Meanwhile, the start-up has been growing rapidly with about 50 companies, including renowned brands, using its services.
