Ecommerce accounts for 42% of PostNL’s revenue

Ecommerce is becoming an increasingly important revenue factor for Dutch postal company PostNL. Revenue derived from ecommerce logistics now accounts for 42 percent of the company’s total turnover. Last year, this share was 34 percent.

PostNL generated 875 million euros worth of revenue during the first quarter of this year. That’s 5 million euros more than during the same quarter last year. Although the company says their Q1 performance is below the comparable quarter last year, they are happy with how things are turning out.

In 2020: half of revenue related to ecommerce

“We continue to make good progress in our transformation to be the postal & logistic solutions provider in the Benelux”, CEO Herna Verhagen says. “Currently, 42 percent of our revenue is now related to ecommerce, showing that we are on track towards our 2020 ambition of more than 50 percent.”

Acquisitions help improve revenue

In the parcels division, PostNL showed some strong volume growth, which they say reflects their solid position in the Benelux ecommerce logistics market. “Revenue improved, also helped by last year’s acquisitions in logistics services.” In 2017, PostNL acquired several logistics companies in the Netherlands. In November it acquired Shops United, which operates as a virtual intermediary between logistics companies and online retailers, as well as CheapCargo, which helps companies to find the best possible shipper for their packages. And in 2015, the postal company also took over Dutch shipping platform MyParcel.