DHL is extending its parcel network across the Nordics and Baltics in cooperation with the Finnish postal operator Posti and Bring, a subsidiary of Norway Post, as part of DHL’s strategy to expand its e-commerce activities in Europe.
The non-exclusive cooperation between DHL Parcel, DHL Freight Sweden, Posti and Bring will come into force from next month onwards, with the companies aiming to jointly offer a dedicated B2C infrastructure for parcel deliveries across Scandinavia, Finland and the Baltic states.
In just two years, DHL Parcel has increased its network footprint to the most important European e-commerce markets offering online retailers a harmonised network with standardised services. After adding the Benelux countries, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Sweden, France and now Denmark, Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, DHL Parcel is present in 16 European countries including its home market Germany.
The delivery network in Scandinavia, Finland and the Baltics will be the largest in these markets and include an estimated 6,500 parcel shops and parcel stations by the end of 2016, DHL said.
“Many of our customers today already ship items to the countries in northern Europe. Together with our local partners, we want to help them grow their business and develop the e-commerce market in these countries as best as possible,” Jürgen Gerdes, CEO Post – eCommerce – Parcel at Deutsche Post DHL Group, said. “In the first step, we will offer 22 million online shoppers in northern Europe convenient access to the largest parcel shop network in this area.”
Through the cooperation with the Finnish and Norwegian postal operators, DHL Parcel is aiming to exploit the strong cross-border online shopping trend in northern Europe and the very strong e-commerce potential in general. According to a recent report by the EU Commission, more than 56% of all residents in this region have ordered something at least once at a foreign online shop. It is also expected that today’s e-commerce market in the Nordics and Baltics, which is currently estimated at approximately € 22.8 billion, will grow by 6% annually until 2020. In the Nordics and Baltics, people are particularly open to online retailing and use the service more than online shoppers in other countries as their expenditures per person significantly exceed the European average.
In Scandinavia, Finland and the Baltics, it is not common for parcels to be delivered to the customers’ doorstep, unlike in other European markets. The dense network of parcel shops and parcel stations will thus increase convenience for consumers, DHL stressed. As part of the new agreement, the DHL Parcel Connect service as has been defined as the standard for B2C cross-border shipments. This means that online retailers shipping to and from these countries can rely on the usual service quality of DHL Parcel which has been further improved. Thus, Saturday delivery, standardised processes and labels for shipping and returns will further speed up transit times in the future.
In addition to the new service standard and Saturday delivery, the partners will establish a system that notifies recipients about the expected arrival time of their parcel. There will also be customer friendly return solutions across all European markets that DHL Parcel operates in, regardless of whether the parcel is sent from Poland, Belgium or Sweden, for example.
“Reliability and flexibility in the area of logistics are crucial for success in online retailing,” Gerdes added. “Together with our partners, we provide the infrastructure and service levels that serve as the foundation for successful online retailing. By expanding our network and offering a consistent high-quality service, we are creating the foundation for a truly pan-European e-commerce landscape and are helping our customers to tap into new markets and grow their business.”
