Hermes Expands Parcel Delivery Resources for the Holiday Season

CHICAGO - Dec. 15, 2015 - PRLog -- Hermes (http://www.hermesworld.com/), a leading provider of end-to-end e-commerce services for fashion and lifestyle brands, announces it is expanding its delivery resources to meet the significant increase in parcel volumes across Europe during the holiday season. In addition to record volumes anticipated for Germany, Hermes’ companies in Austria, the United Kingdom, Russia and Italy project a 25 percent average rise in the number of parcels to be transported. U.S. retailers targeting these markets this season can leverage BorderGuru, Hermes’ cross-border e-commerce solution for online retailers that makes it as easy to sell and ship products internationally as domestically. BorderGuru currently facilitates shipping from the United States to all destinations worldwide. To ensure successful delivery by Christmas Eve, BorderGuru’s U.S. cutoff times are December 17 for deliveries to Europe, Australia and Canada, and December 16 for deliveries to the rest of the world.

In Germany alone, Hermes is projected to handle around 36 million parcels by the end of the year, a 15 percent increase from 2014. To facilitate this volume, Hermes is deploying 5,400 more staff members and 3,300 more vehicles. And, in Austria, parcel volumes are already up 15 percent in the lead up to Christmas. In response, Hermes Logistik Austria now operates a six-day delivery schedule, introducing a Saturday delivery service for the first time.

In like manner, Hermes UK expects parcel volumes to be up 32 percent compared to non-peak times of the year. It could lead to a 20 percent increase compared to last year’s record-breaking peak volume. Hermes UK’s central Warrington, England hub will be processing 500,000 more parcels each day. Human and vehicle resources have been upgraded accordingly.

“We are delighted with the positive development of the ongoing peak business. It highlights the general encouraging performance of our European parcel units during this current financial year,” explains Marc Dessing, COO of Hermes Europe GmbH. “In 2015, we successfully pushed ahead with our strategy of international expansion in key growth markets. On top of traditional home deliveries, this has mainly included our flourishing network of parcel shops that has now become the largest B2C network in Europe, with currently over 37,000 shops. For many customers, the Hermes ParcelShop has established itself as the preferred alternative delivery address – and not just for Christmas business.”

A number of parcels being transported through Hermes’ European network this season will come from U.S. merchants using the BorderGuru service. BorderGuru uses a software solution with free integration via plugin or customization into existing online shops or warehouse systems. BorderGuru calculates and includes all duties and taxes for international delivery at the point of purchase. It then ships the package by air to the best import hub in the destination country. Upon arrival, BorderGuru handles all customs clearance, including export declaration, duty payments and import processing.Relying on its extensive logistics network of the best-in-class B2C delivery companies, BorderGuru delivers the packages to the customer’s door without any delays or unforeseen customs charges.

Uwe Bald, vice president of international development at Hermes, says, “From issues with customs clearance to finding a reliable local logistics service, there are many factors that can delay successful last-mile delivery when selling and shipping across borders. These challenges are further compounded during this high-volume time of the year when parcel delivery lines become congested. BorderGuru eliminates these obstacles and streamlines the entire cross-border commerce process. Customers can then feel confident knowing their packages will arrive in time for the holidays. The result is a win-win solution: low effort to internationalize for merchants and borderless holiday shopping for consumers.”

About Hermes

Hermes provides international logistics services to the retail industry. Headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, it is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Otto Group. The company is a leading specialist in retail-related services and partners with numerous distance sellers of all sizes. The range of services provided by the twelve Hermes companies embraces the full length of the supply chain: sourcing, quality assurance, transport, fulfillment and home delivery. In 2014, the Hermes Group grew its consolidated revenue to 2.230 billion euros and increased the number of employees to 12,470. In 2014, Hermes made more than 530 million deliveries to end customers, establishing Hermes as one of the leading B2C delivery companies in Europe. Hermes operates worldwide and has established country companies in Germany, the United Kingdom, United States, China, Russia, Italy and Austria. For further information, please visit www.hermesworld.com/us.