Over 90 CEOs and senior management figures have gathered in Paris, France, to discuss the challenges and opportunities facing the postal sector as part of the International Postal Corporation (IPC) 2024 Annual Conference.
According to the IPC, parcels and express now account for more than a quarter of overall postal revenue and international operations account for over 20%, highlighting the importance of the growing cross-border market.
With letter mail continuing to decline and affect the bottom line, delegates at the annual conference discussed ways in which posts can adjust their business model to be more diversified in a positive and profitable way.
The leaders explored investment opportunities in sectors that build on core capabilities and expertise, such as e-commerce logistics, retail financial services and digital communications. CEOs also underlined that cross-border e-commerce was increasing and that it represented a lot of opportunities for posts, but that it required that posts work even more closely toward an agile and seamless network.
Holger Winklbauer, IPC CEO, commented, “With the share of mail in postal industry overall revenue decreasing over the past five year to now account for less than 28% of postal revenue, diversification is a key priority for posts worldwide. The Annual Conference of IPC was the occasion for posts to exchange on key market trends and strategies.”
According to IPC, postal employees and trust from the public were seen as the main assets that posts can build on in the future when diversifying into new areas, with digital services, digital signatures and online voting seen as major opportunities. Catering for an aging population was also seen as an area in which posts can play an important role given their footprint throughout their respective countries.