GLS: we’re growing with purpose
GLS has nearly doubled its European OOH delivery network in just 24 months, expanding from 70,000 to 130,000 points as of December 2025.
Peak-season OOH volumes rose 43% compared with the previous year, highlighting strong seasonal demand alongside overall network growth.
This rapid growth makes GLS one of the fastest-growing OOH players in Europe. Rather than focusing on sheer scale, the company is expanding strategically, building a high-quality, service-led network of parcel shops and lockers to meet growing consumer demand for flexible and convenient delivery options.
Building on this momentum, GLS has set an ambitious target of 30,000 own parcel lockers across its network by 2030 at the latest, reinforcing its commitment to becoming one of Europe’s leading OOH networks.
“GLS’ European OOH network has almost doubled in 24 months, highlighting the rapid shift in consumer delivery preferences,” said Johan Holstein, Digital & Last-mile Transformation Director at GLS Group.
“With demand continuing to rise, we’re growing with purpose, focused on quality and accessibility and committed to sustaining this momentum as we build one of Europe’s leading OOH networks—including 30,000 strategically placed own parcel lockers by 2030 at the latest.”
The expansion is backed by significant volume increases across GLS markets. Nearly 29% of GLS’ B2C parcels are now delivered to or picked up from one of GLS’ OOH locations, with overall OOH volumes more than doubling compared with December 2024. A number of countries, such as Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic saw growth rates of more than 100%.
The GLS network, including partners, now counts 130,000 OOH points across Europe, comprising approximately 100,000 parcel shops and 30,000 lockers.
Its parcel shop network is particularly strong in Italy, Denmark and Spain, with premium, well-placed locations delivering high service quality and enhanced customer experiences. This combination of strategically placed shops and lockers makes GLS one of Europe’s most accessible and customer-centric OOH networks. At the same time, home delivery remains a cornerstone of the service, offering premium to-door options with live tracking and in-flight redirection.
Strategic partnerships continue to drive the company’s network expansion, with major collaborations in Germany, the Czech Republic, Italy, the Netherlands and Poland significantly extending GLS’ reach and accessibility across Europe.
As consumer expectations for delivery flexibility continue to evolve, GLS’ investment in a service-led physical and digital OOH infrastructure positions the company to meet growing demand while creating a smoother, more accessible and people-focused delivery experience across Europe.
Customer needs are changing faster than ever and both GLS and Royal Mail, which sit within the global logistics group International Distribution Services (IDS), are rapidly expanding their OOH offering to customers. Royal Mail, GLS’ sister company in the UK, has seen an 80% increase in its own number of lockers and shops in a year, reinforcing its position as the UK’s largest multi-channel parcel network with over 25,000 parcel points and supporting its ambition to reach 45,000 Royal Mail parcel points by 2030.
