FedEx rolls out post office drop-boxes
FedEx Express Tuesday began the installation of more than 700 self-service drop boxes at post offices in Washington D.C., Chicago, Philadelphia, and Trenton, N.J.
An additional 32 cities will be added by the end of July.
The national rollout follows successful tests earlier this year in Charlotte, N.C. and Fort Lauderdale. FedEx declined to give volume totals, but the tests exceeded expectations, said David J. Bronczek, president and chief executive of FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. “Our customers are thrilled,” he said.
The operation is running three weeks ahead of schedule, added Pam Gilbert, USPS’s vice president for retail, consumer and small business. Officials said the teamwork between the two partners has been excellent.
Bronczek said FedEx chose Washington, Philadelphia and Chicago for the national roll-out because it needs to open larger markets, while Trenton fits in as a smaller market.
“The expansion of our drop-off network is designed to benefit all FedEx Express customers, from small, neighborhood businesses and individual shippers to large, worldwide accounts,” Bronczek said.
The Postal Service will also benefit from the increased traffic at post offices. “In retail, traffic is everything,” Gilbert said, adding that customers who stop by a post office to drop off a FedEx package are more likely to buy stamps or other USPS services.
FedEx will pay the Postal Service $126 million over the next seven years for the right to set up 5,000 drop boxes. If it installs more, the revenue for the Postal Service could reach $232 million, Gilbert said.
Also, FedEx and the Postal Service will begin test operations at 11 airports around the country next week for a second agreement under which FedEx will fly Priority Mail, Express Mail and some first-class mail. That agreement takes effect Aug. 27. The test airports includes Washington Dulles, Kennedy and Memphis International.
