Pickup Services

Pickup Services, established in 2000 by a team including Olivier de la Clergerie and Jean-Sébastien Léridon, operates as a key player in the out-of-home delivery market. The company was founded to address the growing need for flexible parcel delivery solutions for e-commerce, a vision stemming from the founders' backgrounds in logistics and retail. Initially launched as part of the LDLC Group, Pickup developed a proprietary network of local shops acting as parcel collection points. Its significant growth led to its acquisition by Groupe La Poste's subsidiary, GeoPost, in 2009, which greatly expanded its operational scale. Following this, Pickup merged with the Kiala network (a former competitor acquired by UPS and later its French activities by GeoPost) in 2016, consolidating its market position. A major milestone was the introduction of automated lockers in 2011, diversifying its service offering beyond traditional pickup points.

The company's business model centers on providing last-mile delivery infrastructure for e-commerce businesses and carriers. Pickup monetizes its services by charging transportation partners and e-commerce clients for each parcel transiting through its network. Its primary clients are major online retailers such as Vinted, Amazon, Zalando, and Decathlon, alongside carriers like Colissimo, Chronopost, and DPD France who perform the daily deliveries to the network points. The core service is offering consumers a convenient alternative to home delivery, allowing them to collect or return parcels at a wide network of locations including local convenience stores, newsagents, and automated lockers. This network comprises over 18,000 relay points and 5,000 lockers in France alone. The main benefit for consumers is the flexibility in collection times and locations, while for e-commerce clients, it offers a cost-effective and efficient delivery option that can improve customer satisfaction and reduce failed delivery attempts.

A key feature of Pickup's service is its dense and expansive network, which is now part of a larger international presence across 30 countries with over 132,000 points, managed through various GeoPost entities. This international reach provides a significant advantage for cross-border e-commerce. The company also focuses on technological integration, providing robust tracking systems and notifications to keep both sender and recipient informed of the parcel's status. Pickup continues to expand its locker network, particularly in high-traffic areas like train stations and supermarket car parks, to further enhance convenience for urban consumers. Headquartered near Paris, the company employs around 400 people dedicated to managing and expanding this extensive logistics network.

Keywords: parcel logistics, e-commerce delivery, pickup points, parcel lockers, out-of-home delivery, last-mile solutions, click-and-collect, PUDO network, returns management, logistics services