Britain’s station-based parcel shop network Doddle opens 35th store
Doddle, the network of station-based parcel shops launched last year by Britain’s rail infrastructure firm Network Rail, has now opened its 35th store. The latest store was opened up on Platform 12 at London’s Paddington Station, one of the busiest stations in the country with 17.4m visitors each year.
Doddle, which was co-founded by entrepreneur Lloyd Dorfman, said it has now opened 35 Doddle outlets in the space of 35 weeks.
The company’s outlets allow Internet shoppers to direct their parcel to a Doddle store for collection on their way to or from work, or at the weekend, to avoid missed deliveries at home.
Doddle is aiming to have 100 stores open by the end of 2015, with up to 250 locations by the end of 2017, creating 3,000 new jobs in the process.
The company’s business model relies on fewer outlets than rival parcel shop networks, but each outlet is located at a location offering more potential foot flow — a busy railway station.
The new store at Paddington Station is open 7am to 8pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm Saturdays and 11am to 5pm Sundays.
Tim Robinson, the Doddle chief executive, said: “Missing a delivery is a real pain and costs the industry up to £750m a year, a cost which is inevitably passed onto consumers. We’re looking forward to doing our bit to help make online shopping a doddle by providing a convenient place for commuters and people working and living nearby to receive their deliveries and return unwanted items.”
Doddle says it has retail partnerships in place with firms including Amazon, Hawes & Curtis, Halfords, TM Lewin and Countrywide Farmers, and promises a “number of new partnerships” will be announced soon.
Network Rail, which manages Britain’s stations and rail track infrastructure, originally launched Doddle as a way to make more use of under-used space at railway stations.
David Biggs, Network Rail’s managing director of Property, said profits from the Doddle business are put back into the railway business.
“The hundreds of thousands of passengers using Paddington Station every day can now make use of this conveniently located parcel service and any profits we make are reinvested into the railway,” he said.
