Belgian postal operator bpost has agreed a non-exclusive partnership with DHL Parcel, a division of Deutsche Post DHL, to facilitate and accelerate the cross-border online shopping experience for consumers in the Benelux.
The partnership enables Belgian consumers to shop at Dutch online stores in the evening and have their purchase delivered by bpost the next day, and vice versa. Cross-border returns between Belgium and the Netherlands will also be made as easy as shopping domestically. For e-tailers, the partnership creates an all-in-one logistics solution, further helping to simplify the administrative and operational processes.
Wouter van Benten, CEO of DHL Parcel Benelux, said, “DHL and bpost are two leading innovative parcel deliverers working on a global scale. The partnership between bpost and DHL gives Dutch online stores access to a huge potential market of Belgian online shoppers and facilitates cross-border shopping, delivery and returns.”
Luc Cloet, CEO parcels and logistics – Europe and Asia, bpost, said, “We are delighted that our partnership with DHL is being extended to create an all-in-one solution for e-tailers in Belgium and the Netherlands. They now benefit from one single logistics solution that makes their life easier and widens their potential customer base.”
DHL and bpost have made significant operational investments in the Benelux region in recent years with bpost opening a new letter and parcel sorting center in Brussels that doubled the daily sorting capacity to 300,000 parcels.
DHL Parcel is also building a new sorting hub in Zaltbommel, Netherlands, which can handle half a million parcels. Both carriers support a wide-variety of delivery options including track-and-trace and return facilities, as well as the ability to choose where and when they receive their parcel.
Together, the two companies have more than 4,400 service points, comprising 1,900 in the Netherlands and 2,500 in Belgium.