The Future of E-Commerce ft. Parcel Lockers

(Click here to view the HD version of the infographic) 

What were the e-commerce trends you noticed in 2020?

The pandemic outbreak last year shocked many industries globally, and retail businesses were ‘forced’ to rethink their existing strategies and adopt new business models. The logistics and supply chain industry also took a hit with the unprecedented surge in e-commerce demand amid international border closures. 

One of the key trends we observed was the rise in usage of collection points and parcel lockers during the pandemic outbreak; a contactless and convenient delivery alternative. Curious whether this trend is here to stay post-COVID, we looked into the key developments in collections and parcel lockers in the US, UK, and Poland in 2020.

This study features data on the percentage of parcels delivered to collection points and parcel lockers in the US, UK, and Poland for the full year of 2020 (excl. parcels from Amazon). 

Parcel lockers in the US, UK, and Poland 

Our data suggest that only 3.7% of parcels in the US were delivered to collection points and parcel lockers, while the UK and Poland had 4.5% and 10.5% respectively. Whilst it might appear that consumers in the US and UK have yet to fully embrace this delivery alternative, with more retailers and logistics providers offering such services, we believe this number will increase greatly in the years to come. 

Retail access points are preferred over parcel lockers in the US

In the US, FedEx, Amazon, UPS, and USPS offer over 70,000 access points that allow recipients to pick up their parcels at different locations. These access points are not restricted to parcel lockers and come in various forms: e.g. drop boxes, carrier shipping centers, third-party retail stores, and more. On the other hand, US carriers have yet to embrace parcel lockers due to the high costs involved; a regular parcel locker in the US costs over USD 30,000. 

The alternative delivery market in the US will continue to grow this year. With demand for buy online, pick-up in-store (BOPIS) on the rise, more US retailers are offering services such as curbside pickup. Retailers who offered BOPIS services in 2020 saw a 49% increase in online sales, and sales from “click-and-collect” in the US are projected to reach more than $100 billion in 2022.

InPost and Amazon are setting up huge parcel locker networks in the UK

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