This year Itella has delivered 1.1 million more parcels than last year. All in all, Itella delivered more than 31 million parcels during the year. The amount of Christmas deliveries from consumer online shopping increased by 7.5% compared to last Christmas. Online stores have become a popular Christmas shopping purchase option among consumers. In anticipation of the Christmas season, staff were increased at the outlets, along with further sales points and more shelf space at the operating locations to meet the required numbers of home parcel deliveries.
The number of parcels through the parcel point service tripled
Posti's parcel points turned out to be the most popular pick-up location for web purchases before Christmas. Triple the number of deliveries to the parcel points were ordered compared to the previous Christmas. Some of the most popular parcel points were full of uncollected packages from time to time. In these cases, new shipments were sent to the recipients' homes. Itella Posti forwarded all the parcels sent in time for Christmas.
"At Itella, it was once again an honor to be part of the Christmas preparations. We ensured things ran smoothly over Christmas through a variety of special arrangements, so that the occasional backlog was cleared efficiently. In 2014, our network of parcel points will continue to expand and there will be 175 new points, which will increase the total number of parcel points to 500. Significant growth is forecasted for e-commerce, so we are constantly developing our ability to respond to its demands and to provide consumers with a variety of delivery methods and pick-up locations," says Juha Tiittanen, Director of Parcel Services.
Itella Termo deliveries were twice that of a normal month in December, and the use of the temperature-monitored, refrigerated transport increased by 60% for the year overall. The Termo refrigerated delivery service is ideal for small food items, for the delivery from the producer to companies or directly to the home of the consumer.
Christmas cards to remember friends near and far
This Christmas, traditional Christmas cards delighted millions of Finns. About 37 million Christmas cards were sent. The importance of sending Christmas cards seems not to have decreased significantly and e-greetings are not encroaching on the Christmas card tradition. According to an Itella survey however, most people send electronic greetings as well as traditional Christmas cards. Last Christmas, almost 40 million Christmas cards were sent. On average, a person sends 17 Christmas cards and electronic greetings to an average of eight people. Christmas is by far Finland's largest card season. Traditional motifs are very popular for Christmas cards, and the most appreciated cards are those that have been self-made.
Further information for the media: Itella MediaDesk, tel. 020 452 3366 (weekdays 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
