Postal Hub podcast

Dean Maciuba, Managing Partner North America at Last Mile Experts, joins me to discuss recent developments in e-commerce returns from Walmart, FedEx, Amazon, and more: Walmart allowing customers to return online purchases without leaving the home Walmart's partnership with FedEx - including returns Who is paying for free collection? It's not the customer! FedEx looking for delivery density Availab...

Jonathan Reeve, General Manager APAC at Eagle Eye, joins me to talk about e-commerce, subscription models, and the role of delivery companies: The origins of subscription services, e.g. milk and newspapers What make a good subscription service? Building customer loyalty Recycling packaging Benefits to the customer of Amazon Prime Variations of Amazon Prime, including Wardrobe Competing subscriptio...

Marek Różycki and Dean Maciuba from Last Mile Experts join me to pore over some of the big delivery issues in 2020 and what lies ahead in 2021: Increased operating costs due to COVID countermeasures Residential delivery stops - drivers doing over 250 deliveries per day Amazon's own capacity for residential deliveries (USA) Training for delivery drivers B2B packages delivered to business addresses...

The USPS Office of Inspector General has published research into Generation Z and the mail. Dr Joanna Wu Gerhardt researcher at USPS OIG and one of the co-authors of the report " Generation Z and the mail ", joins me to discuss some of the key findings from the report: Defining Generation Z Do Gen Z digital natives know anything about the postal service? Kinds of mail Gen Z receives and sends Comm...

Tom Day, Chief Commercial Officer and Chief Financial Officer at the International Post Corporation (IPC), joins me to discuss reducing emissions in the postal sector: Six key aims for SMMS Recyclable packaging products sold by postal operators Reusable packaging products The impact of 2020 on posts' emissions reduction strategies Workload for letter delivery compared to parcel delivery Strategies...

Brexit and the STOP Act are almost upon us! These two events will reshape global cross-border e-commerce. Martyn Noble and David Spottiswood , co-founders of Hurricane Modular Commerce join me to discuss: The countdown to Brexit - implications for countries inside and outside the EU Is it too late to start planning for post-Brexit cross-border trade? Data and customs Why Brexit is a global problem...

What's the future for Royal Mail's Universal Service Obligation (USO)? It's not just about letters! Tim Harrison, Senior Policy Researcher at Citizens Advice , joins me to discuss: Role of Citizens Advice as a consumer advocate Royal Mail's USO for letter delivery and parcel delivery Comparison with letter delivery obligations in other countries Royal Mail exceeding regulatory obligations for parc...

AED/EAD is a hot topic in international postal circles right now! Kate Muth , Executive Director at IMAG (International Mailers Advisory Group), shares an update on sharing advance electronic data for cross-border parcels - and compliance with the USA's STOP Act: Background to the STOP Act Movement of illicit narcotics through the international postal system AED (or EAD) to help customs authoritie...

Josh Dinneen, Chief Commercial Officer at LaserShip, joins me to discuss research into shopping trends during the pandemic - and what all that means for the delivery sector: Older generations embracing ecommerce Indicators for continued strength in parcel volumes Retailers going bankrupt and store closures during the pandemic, compared to online fulfilment Customer preferences and behaviours relat...

Khaled Naim, co-founder and CEO of Onfleet , joins me to discuss the modern customer experience in delivery: The importance of the e-commerce shopper's customer experience How Amazon is raising customer expectations in delivery Three ways to optimise customer delivery experience The role drivers can play in enhancing the customer experience Real-time customer support Customer demands for same-day...

Parcel locker evangelist and bpost VP Locker Boost Catherine De Baets joins me to talk about bpost's Ecozone project to go emission-free in the last mile: bpost parcel locker boost programme Background to the Ecozone in the Belgian city of Mechelen - and working towards being completely emission-free Combining a dense locker network with electric vehicles Cooperating with local retailers Creating...

Lee Spratt, CEO of DHL eCommerce Solutions Americas, joins me to talk about preparations for peak season 2020: Events that usually kick off peak season Bringing forward peak planning Parcel volumes during 2020 that have exceeded peak 2019 Asking e-commerce retailers to forecast and manage volumes Working with last mile partners (including work share arrangements with US Postal Service) Balancing p...

Alexander Haneng , Director for Digital Innovation at Posten Norge / Bring, joins me to talk about delivery innovation in Norway: Background to the partnership with supermarket chain Coop Penetration of online groceries and home delivery Building a home delivery solution very quickly and integrating it into Posten's delivery network How the system works in practice, including picking orders, packa...

How did the US Postal Service become a political football? And what happens next? Analysis from John Callan of Ursa Major Associates: Pre-paying pension obligations No governors on the US Postal Service board 2018 taskforce report and hints at privatisation President Trump and Amazon - and Jeff Bezos The USA's stoush with the UPU over terminal dues Megan Brennan's retirement as USPS Postmaster Gen...

Chris Wong, General Manager Business Marketing NZ Post, joins me to talk about shopping behaviour and parcel volumes during the pandemic: Key events that stimulated surges in e-commerce parcel volumes The impact of lockdown (and the closure of businesses) on parcel volumes New online shoppers and established online shoppers - and what will be the effects on customer behaviour Online as a share of...

Wayne Haubner, Escher Chief Technology Officer, and Ken Peterson, President, Customer Experience, QuestionPro, go in-depth on the future of contactless delivery and customer self-service: Impact of the pandemic on contactless delivery Pre-pandemic trends in self-service, such as parcel lockers and self-service terminals, as well as online Easy wins for postal operators to offer contactless deliver...

Dean Maciuba, Director Consulting Services at Logistics Trends & Insights, joins me to discuss the universal parcel locker concept: Defining a Universal Parcel Locker (UPL) network Managing the physical network Parcels from different carriers and merchants Post-pandemic parcel volumes - implications for a UPL network Current parcel locker networks in the USA Access points (PUDOs) being set up in l...

Online retail strategist Tim Davies joins me to talk about eBay Plus – the service offering Australian eBay shoppers express delivery on their orders: Overview of the Australian e-commerce network, including leading marketplaces Why big retailers sell on eBay.com.au Size of eBay's Australian market (hint: it's big) eBay Plus loyalty programme Express delivery (to selected areas) Free returns The p...

Cathy Morrow Roberson (Logistics Trends & Insights) joins me to discuss Amazon and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF): Amazon's announcement about SAF What's the rest of the air cargo sector doing? Retiring older fleets and using more fuel-efficient aircraft Reducing overall carbon emissions Amazon going for net zero carbon Groundside emissions Also in this episode: Delta Cargo and its pledge to beco...

Melissa Obeid, founder of sustainable luxury beauty brand La Fervance , joins me to discuss brand values, the supply chain, and the last mile. We cover: What sustainability means for a brand COSMOS certification Building sustainability into a brand's DNA Packaging - including minimisation of plastic usage Minimising the carbon footprint in the supply chain Quality What happens to packaging after t...

Kathy Sivitier, assistant executive director of the National Association of Presort Mailers , on public-private partnerships and the future of the mail. We cover: Role of mail service providers in the US Postal Service mail system What the Intelligent Barcode does Co-mingling and aggregation of mail Broader applications for public-private partnerships Filling up half-empty trucks The future of mai...

Kate Muth, executive director of the International Mailers Advisory Group (IMAG), joins me to talk about changes to international postal charges following the reforms passed in the UPU last year. We cover: Reform of the UPU terminal dues system Self-declaring rates Countries other than the USA changing international rates Practical impact of rates changes Differences between contract rates and ret...

Kit Ahweyevu, founder and CEO of Mindweaver , on building diverse teams and how diversity fuels innovation: The hallmarks of true innovation Creating space for ideas Testing and exploring new ideas Formulating and implementing diversity policies Moving away from box-ticking Diversity as part of strategy, innovation, productivity and profitability Understanding the customer base to build mass marke...

Bertrand Späth, co-founder of active tracking provider Kizy Tracking, discusses creating a modern tracking solution and enhancing the customer experience: Creating best-in-class customer tracking Transparency in cross-border shipping Customer expectations - especially younger digital natives' expectations Current problems with parcel tracking, including: Visibility Quality of data Passive barcode...

Marek Ròżycki, managing partner at Last Mile Experts - and one half of the Last Mile Prophets - joins me to talk about how city centres are changing during the pandemic: Cities closing off lanes and parking zones Creation of bicycle lanes and pedestrian zones Role of electric vehicles in city centre delivery Out-of-home delivery, including parcel lockers Local authorities' role in creating carrier...