Canadian parcel business booming

Canada’s postal business is booming, and the increase is not being attributed to the Christmas season, but to more people shopping online.

In recent years, there has been some concern that the country’s mail system has been dwindling as more people opt to send emails instead of hand-written letters. But it’s Canadian’s affection for the web which has led to a surge in parcel shipping.

“There’s absolutely no doubt in anyone’s mind that the web has a huge impact on the delivery volume as it is become a norm,” UPS vice president of marketing, Nicolas Dorget, told News 95.7. “It’s become the mode of choice. People are starting to lose their appetite for waiting in line.”

He said online sales are expected to represent four per cent of retail sales this holiday season, a year during which the private postal company said it planned to deliver over 527 million packages in the month leading up to Christmas.

“It’s a huge bump,” he said, explaining it’s a 10 per cent increase from this time last year.

UPS hired an extra 55,000 temporary workers around the world to deal with the increase.

Dorget said he expects the trend to continue as more companies’ websites become even more attractive.

“Two things are going to happen,” he said. “Our retail experience is going to improve and continue to improve to attract customers in store. You’re going to have to complement that with a fantastic web experience to make sure that buying online is as satisfying as buying from a retail outlet.”

Canada Post has also seen an increase, delivering 41 million packages this year over the 38 million delivered last year.

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