Category «Business»

Building Europe’s electric-truck charging infrastructure

Charging infrastructure has become a crucial aspect of electric trucking. Companies are vying to provide comprehensive solutions, but significant challenges related to vehicles, charging networks, and the electric grid still need to be addressed at scale. According to McKinsey, expanding electric trucks will necessitate a robust charging network in Europe, where an estimated 300,000 public …

Dutch cargo bike company Cycloon is laying off 440 employees

Dutch mail and parcel service Cycloon is laying off 440 employees as part of a reorganization. The cargo bike courier from Zwolle is discontinuing the delivery of parcels that do not fit through the mailbox. As a result, the company has announced the closure of sixteen bicycle courier branches and the central parcel sorting center, …

DHL eCommerce and Poste Italiane launch Locker Italia

DHL eCommerce and Poste Italiane are celebrating the launch of Locker Italia, a joint venture dedicated to creating a modern and convenient parcel locker network across Italy. This milestone marks one year since the two companies formed their strategic partnership in the Italian and international parcel market. The official launch event occurred on September 16 …

JD Ochama expanding in Paris (F)

Ochama, the European omni-channel retail brand of JD.com, has recently expanded its pickup point network in Paris, aiming to boost fulfillment efficiency across France. Using JD Logistics’ Paris-based warehouse, this expansion allows customers to pick up their orders as early as the day after placing them. In addition, Ochama now offers next-day home delivery for …

Dutch Budbee stops home deliveries

Budbee, part of Instabee, is making a bold move in the Netherlands by redefining parcel delivery: “We’re no longer doing home deliveries,” says General Manager Jørgen Höppener. The company aims to make parcel delivery both genuinely sustainable and profitable. Budbee plans to deliver parcels exclusively to its approximately 1,000 parcel lockers nationwide. This shift is …

Amazon fulfillment cost in H1 2024: 37,5% of net sales

Amazon’s net product sales for the first half of 2024 were $122 billion. Amazon’s online store sales rose 5% in the second quarter to $55.4 billion, compared with a growth of 7% in the first quarter. Reported slowing online sales growth in the second quarter and said cautious consumers were seeking cheaper purchase options, sending shares …

McKinsey: the decline in post-pandemic logistics funding persists

The decline in post-pandemic logistics funding persists. After peaking at an unprecedented $25.6 billion in 2021, venture funding for logistics start-ups plummeted to just $2.9 billion in 2023, marking a nearly 90 percent drop over two years and the lowest funding level since 2015. Venture capitalists (VCs) and logistics entrepreneurs are now facing the reversal of trends …