UK Mail Group sees parcel volumes up 15% in latest quarter
UK Mail Group has said its latest quarter has seen good growth thanks to 15% higher parcel volumes than the same period last year. The company issued a pre-close trading update yesterday revealing that Group revenues were up about 6% year-on-year in the three months up to the end of March.
The performance meant the year as a whole achieved revenue growth of about 7% compared to the 12 months up to the end of March 2013.
UK Mail said it did achieve growth in its mail business, with a “good increase” in mail volumes as the company retained existing customers and won new contracts.
But the parcel business has seen particular growth driven by online shopping, which has seen the mix of the company’s volumes swing further towards business-to-consumer parcels.
During the quarter, UK Mail also saw growth in its courier business following a number of new contract gains, while the company’s recovery plan for its Pallets business also brought growth in the quarter.
“Strength”
Guy Buswell, the chief executive of UK Mail Group, said the volume growth in both mail and parcels showed the “strength of our customer offering”.
He said UK Mail’s move to offer one-hour delivery windows for its parcel deliveries was now being rolled out across the network, describing this development as a “key area” for customers.
Changes to the UK Mail network have also been making progress, including work on a new flagship hub.
“We are making good progress with strategic investment in our business. Our new central sortation hub near Coventry is under construction, and is currently on track to be operational in mid 2015. Once completed this new facility will provide us with a strong platform for further volume growth and future operating efficiencies,” said Buswell.
The UK Mail CEO said the coming year would be “something of a transitional period” for the company, which has 55 sites and about 2,500 vehicles. Its move to the new hub has been prompted by the UK government’s high-speed rail (HS2) project setting its route through the existing UK Mail hub in Birmingham.
UK Mail Group is expected to issue its full results for the year up to the end of March 2014 on 21 May, 2014.
