Posti has developed a new last-mile delivery solution aimed at meeting the needs of the e-commerce sector. Box, a new location in the heart of Helsinki city center, is a parcel delivery point equipped with fitting rooms, a large parcel locker and a digital kiosk.
According to Posti, Box also acts as a physical store for online retailers and as a testing space for Posti’s new digital services. The premises in Keskuskatu, Helsinki, will be opened on November 1, 2019.
Box was developed in response to the growing e-commerce sector. According to a survey conducted by Posti, almost 20% of respondents estimated that they will buy everything or almost everything online in 2025.
“The new space in Keskuskatu is an accurate illustration of the historically quick change of e-commerce and Posti. Due to the growth in online and C2C sales, a significant share of consumers’ visits to Posti have to do with collecting or sending parcels. This is why we need to change. Box is our response to the growth of e-commerce and to the new consumer habits of the Finnish people. Box is a great example of how Posti is reforming,” said Posti’s head of customer experience and channels, Kaisa Ilola.
Any customer of Posti can have their order delivered to Box and pick it up, for instance, on their way to work or during a shopping trip in the city center. The purpose of Box is to make it as easy as possible to pick up and send online orders.
“If a customer has placed an order for clothes online, they can try on the clothes straight away. If the clothes fit, that’s great. If they don’t fit, the customer can return them immediately without having to go home first. Customers can also leave the packaging materials here to be recycled or used by other customers,” Ilola added.
Box can also be used by online retailers for organizing their own pop-up events and as a display window for their products. Posti’s own digital services will also be tested at Box. For example, parcels and letters can be sent via the new self-service terminal, where the customer can pay for shipping and speak to Posti’s customer service team via a video connection, if necessary. The self-service terminals are currently being tested, as they will be used in the OmaPosti kiosks that will be opened in the future.