Is this tomorrow's letterbox?
COMING soon to a street near you – the future of the Post Office. As mail order and e-commerce have exploded in recent years, the Post Office is looking at new ways to cope with the demand for home deliveries, writes Jamie Doward
Later this year the Post Office, now called Consignia, will begin trials of a new system where secure metal containers, the size of washing machines, are placed outside selected homes in several hundred London locations with an SW postcode. Each device, known as a Bear Box (right), has a computer code that allows it to be opened. Once the goods are deposited the customer is alerted via email or text message.
The demand for home deliveries has increased by 80 per cent since 1996.
‘Fulfilment levels in home delivery are very unsatisfactory. There is a 60 per cent failure rate at the first time. It’s a huge cost to business,’ said James Bates, marketing director with Bear Box.
White goods manufacturer Electrolux is to make 5,000 units for the London market this year. There are plans to install 50,000 across the country. Bear Box will charge each home an installation fee of around pounds 50 and then a monthly retainer of pounds 10. It will also earn a commission from the delivery company.
Bates said the Post Office was enthusiastic about the trials. ‘We’ve been testing the marketplace with them for some time. Consignia is undergoing a reinvention. It is looking at different ways of increasing volumes and customer satisfaction and this fits the bill.’
The Observer
