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Weekend deliveries in Europe – Yes!

European parcel carriers are taking bold steps forward by expanding weekend delivery services. DPD – a time critical carrier in the UK – began express Sunday delivery in the United Kingdom on July 20, 2014. The new service includes DPD's “Predict” timeslot deliveries, where the recipients are given a one hour delivery timeslot. The recipient is notified by text message or email of the timeslot and can then track the driver in real-time until delivery of their package.

The service will help create more than 500 new jobs in the country as DPD's depot network expands to accommodate a 7-day week. Sunday delivery times will be between 9 am and 5 pm. Similarly, the UK delivery company Hermes has also announced a Sunday delivery service to provide further choice for its customers.

GLS, a parcel service provider, is experimenting with Saturday delivery in Germany. According to the new delivery options, Frankfurt and Düsseldorf area customers can now choose evening or Saturday delivery options. Delivery time for the evening is from 5 pm to 8 pm, Saturday delivery time is between 8 am and 1 pm. The company stated that if the pilot program is successful, the new delivery options will be offered in more areas in phases. DPD, which also operates a service in Germany, has announced that they will start Saturday delivery in Germany this fall.

This is good news for working Europeans, who are unlikely to be at home during standard weekday delivery times (8 am – 6 pm). One of the main things customers are looking for when they are online shopping is convenience. According to this consumer shopping study, convenience is the number one reason for store selection. Saturday is quickly becoming one of the busiest shopping days for e-retailers. Which explains why weekend delivery is such an attractive prospect. However, weekend delivery costs are expensive and thus are not yet as popular. The prices might come down to encourage customers to buy more, opening 24/7 future for parcel carriers.

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