DHL sees “positive” performance for Austrian parcels business
DHL has reported that it has seen a “positive” performance from its parcel business in Austria, which started operations in just over a year ago in September 2015. “The way in which our business has performed has been extraordinarily positive,” said Günter Birnstingl, Managing Director of DHL Parcel Austria. “Within a year, we have been able to build up an infrastructure that allows us to successfully serve every postal code in Austria.”
Austria’s dynamic e-commerce market has been the driver for this performance.
DHL said that it has made “a targeted decision to focus on the needs of these e-commerce customers and parcel recipients” – through initiatives including a nationwide delivery on Saturdays and customer-oriented evening delivery.
The company said that it is continuing to roll out new services to develop its Austrian business.
“In the city of Graz,” said DHL, “the first fully automated logistics centre will begin operating this month before the location in the Cargo Centre takes over the function as primary hub for southern and southeastern Austria in the DHL parcel network.
“In the Liesing district of the city of Vienna, the second logistics center is currently under construction, offering 30,000 square meters of space. It will begin operations next year and take over parcel delivery for greater metropolitan Vienna and the central districts.”
Birnstingl added: “Thanks to some 1,900 parcel shops across Austria we can already provide customer-friendly parcel services – whether customers need to pick up or post their parcels.
“This number is expected to surpass 2,000 by the end of the year.”
DHL’s largest partner of the parcel shops is the supermarket chain Billa.
Billa and DHL have agreed to expand their partnership still further: by the end of this year, some 400 to 500 Billa stores will also be DHL parcel shops.
DHL Parcel also plans to expand the number of its Packstations. Vienna already has around 35 of the parcel systems, and another 15 are expected to be installed in other cities such as Graz and Linz by the end of the year.
