PostNL has acquired PS Nachtdistributie, a leading player in overnight distribution in the Benelux region, as part of its strategy to become the leading logistics e-commerce company in the Benelux market.
The company explained that the latest acquisition will allow it to meet customer needs even more effectively and is in line with a growing demand for flexibility from both parcel shippers and recipients and the growing popularity of same-day delivery services.
“We are always looking for opportunities and new trends and developments in the parcel delivery market and will continue to enhance and expand PostNL’s networks. Overnight parcel delivery is certainly part of that strategy, as it is a way of sidestepping the busy traffic we see on roads and city centres during the daytime,” Gerrit Mastenbroek, Parcels & Logistics Director at PostNL, said.
“We are proud of this acquisition, as our logistics network will now be extended to include an overnight network – this represents a major asset for our company. This acquisition will enable PostNL to deliver parcels across the Benelux countries 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” he added.
PS Nachtdistributie operates an extensive distribution network in the Benelux region, providing overnight parcel delivery services to a variety of customers and industries. Following the acquisition, PS Nachtdistributie’s state-of-the-art sorting centre in Vianen (Utrecht province) will be added to the PostNL network, which will remain otherwise unchanged.
In concrete terms, customers currently using PostNL’s daytime and evening parcel delivery services will now also have the option of overnight delivery. In addition, the acquisition provides PS Nachtdistributie with access to a ‘one-stop-shop’ for all PostNL’s logistics solutions.
Earlier this year, Pim Berendsen, head of international, innovation and M&A at PostNL, already said that the company could be ready to invest in innovative start-ups in areas such as same-day and food deliveries. “We need to find new niches and new pockets of growth. E-commerce plays a crucial role,” he said at the European Post & Parcel Services conference in Amsterdam in March.
Berendsen explained that PostNL is now pursuing a standalone strategy after bpost’s failed offer last autumn, trying to refocus its portfolio on e-commerce services and away from the declining mail business.
