Double-digit growth for Hermes Group

The Hermes Group has reported a turnover of €2,460m for the 2015 fiscal year, up 11% on 2014. In a statement sent to Post&Parcel today (21 April), Hermes said that the international parcel and logistics business was a key contributor to this growth, driven by the booming e-commerce.

In Europe alone, the Hermes parcel companies moved around 580m shipments – 11% more than in the previous year. Around 74% of this volume came from retailers outside the Otto Group (Hermes’ parent). Indeed, this third-party business expanded by 16% and Hermes said it will be continuing its investment to “further secure its role as a preferred partner for e-commerce retailers”.

“The strategy of internationalisation was anchored early in the Hermes Group and is consistently pursued – and now it’s paying off. We have very successfully evolved from being a leading logistics supplier in the European market to become a global full service provider in e-commerce,“ commented Hanjo Schneider, member of the Otto Group board for Services and chairman of the supervisory board of Hermes Europe.

“We’re happy to be concluding our 12th year in a row with significant growth, as well as outperforming the competition in relevant markets such as Germany and the UK. We want to build on this in 2016. Digital transformation will continue to be the megatrend in our globalised world in the future. This is an exciting opportunity that opens up potentials for growth and clearly shapes our agenda at Hermes.“

Hermes parcel companies in Germany, the UK, Austria, Italy and Russia made around 580m deliveries in the 2015 fiscal year, up from 530m in 2014. The group also reported growth in the two-man market: in 2015 the Hermes two-man teams transported around 4.5m pieces of furniture and large equipment, up around 15% on 2014.

The Hermes statement added: “Despite the increasing competition in delivering to private customers, parcel business within Germany was again very successful in 2015.

“Alongside collaboration with new, large-scale clients from the shipping trade such as Yves Rocher and Glossybox, the company also won more small and medium-sized retailers as customers. The planned extension of the Hermes logistics network – representing an investment of over €300m – was one of the key drivers for this.

“From 2018, 35 predominantly newly designed or expanded logistics centres will provide even greater closeness to customers and shorter delivery times. The first new building is currently being put up in Bad Rappenau, Baden-Württemberg.”

Hermes also reported strong progress for its new digital services and highlighted some of the collaborative projects it is working on, including the ParcelLock system that Hermes is developing together with DPD and GLS.

Focusing on its UK operations, Hermes commented: “The Hermes parcel division in the UK is the largest privately managed parcel service provider in the sector, and its growth has significantly outpaced the market in 2015.

“The 4,500 Hermes ParcelShops have made a significant contribution in this respect, and since their introduction in 2012 have become established as an alternative delivery address.

“Current investment in technology and infrastructure are helping continuing this expansion.

“Hermes UK is currently investing €23m in new handheld scanners with satellite-supported tracking software, as well as many other exciting projects.”

The company statement highlighted its new parcel centre in Rugby, Warwickshire, which is currently being built at a cost of €40m.

Hermes then reported on its progress in Austria, where its  1,600 Hermes ParcelShops have been offering a Saturday service for the first time in 2015 – a feature whih Hermes said “sets it apart from its direct competitors”.

As previously covered by Post&Parcel, Hermes has been building up its new cross-border shipping subsidiary BorderGuru over the past year and it has had some notable successes – including a partnership deal with Alibaba.

Hermes reported that its subsidiary Zitra, a global trading partner for brands and retailers, and Hermes Fulfilment also performed well in 2015.