Market Trends

The UK subscription box market* is forecast to grow by 72 per cent by 2022, according to a report commissioned by Royal Mail. The market is forecast to be valued at £1 billion by 2022, compared to £583 million estimated spend in 2017. This will see the number of deliveries each year grow from 40.1 million to an estimated 65.3 million. Spurred on by the growth of mobile devices, subscription commerce has moved on from…

As PC World and Curry’s join the ranks of retailers who take home delivery Christmas orders on Christmas Eve, the Christmas delivery expert ParcelHero reveals exactly who leaves gift buying until the very last minute! The retailers PC World and Curry’s have joined Argos and Amazon in taking guaranteed Christmas delivery orders on Christmas Eve. But the online parcel booking site ParcelHero has been asking exactly who are the shoppers who dare leave presents buying…

REVEALED: the thrifty tactics Brits take when receiving a present they don’t like! Brits are re-gifting Christmas presents they have been bought and passing them off as their own, according to new research. Astonishingly, 59% of the UK public have admitted to giving presents away to friends or family members, thus saving themselves time and money on having to purchase their own gifts. The research by parcel comparison website, Parcel2Go, discovered one in five people…

Private companies need to do more to help small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) go global, according to influential British business figures who attended the FedEx SME Export Report Roundtable.  Exporting has significantly changed as a result of the digital channels, posing new challenges and opportunities for smaller businesses. FedEx Express, the world’s largest express transportation company and a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX), recently hosted an exclusive roundtable with 10 influential British business…

Artificial intelligence (AI) is expected to grow massively in 2017. Analyst firm Forrester predicts investment in AI to treble in 2017 alone. The impact could well be profound, potentially transforming industries and providing huge streamlining and commercially beneficial upsides. The potential benefits will no doubt be of interest to those in the retail and logistics sectors. But is AI still a nascent technology? Could AI transform the retail and logistics industries? We’ll examine these questions…

British consumers are demanding more flexibility and faster delivery times from online retailers and delivery couriers, new research reveals. With the growth of online retailing there is growing pressure for online retailers to fulfil and deliver orders more quickly with delivery options to suit consumers lifestyles giving them the ability to track their purchases from the warehouse to their doorstep. A study conducted by delivery management company Whistl has delved further into the growing delivery…

Pitney Bowes Parcel Shipping Index 2017 can today reveal the UK parcel market is set for a “huge shake-up” in new trends and emerging technologies in last-mile delivery, following last year’s increase in parcel deliveries by 12% to 2.5 billion and spending increased by 8% to £10 billion. Market growth will give rise to new delivery models like crowd-shipping, on-demand delivery services, evening and weekend delivery and drones, says Pitney Bowes, as companies focus on…