Parcel services in Germany increasingly deliver to automated machines

Parcel delivery services in Germany expect to continue increasing the number of automatic parcel lockers and other machines for handling deliveries to customers.

Market leader DHL has announced plans to double the number of automated pick-up and drop-off stations from the current 15,000 to 30,000 by 2030.

Competitors GLS and DPD, meanwhile, plan to operate 3,000 joint stations by 2027, compared to around 100 at present. Austrian provider myflexbox, whose stations are used by several parcel companies, is also planning to increase the number of stations in Germany from the current 460 to at least 5,000 by 2030.

DHL, the global logistics sister firm to Germany's Deutsche Post postal service, relies on a variety of machines located in public places such as supermarkets, train stations, petrol stations or street corners.

The company currently has 14,200 "Packstations" for parcels and 800 "Poststations," where consumers can use QR codes to drop off and pick up parcels and buy stamps, as well as access customer service via video.

Stations will soon be added by a DHL subsidiary called DeinFach, which, like myflexbox, only provides the infrastructure and does not send any parcels itself.

Delivery staff from other parcel services, as well as retailers, will also be able to use the DHL-owned DeinFach stations to temporarily store goods in compartments until collected by a customer.

DeinFach is set to put the first 60 white machines into operation at the end of January, with a four-digit number planned by the end of the year.

"Our network of vending machines is becoming denser - on average, the distance consumers have to travel to pick up their parcels is getting shorter and shorter," said DHL board member Nikola Hagleitner. "The stations are easy to use and available around the clock - that's a big advantage for customers."

DHL also relies on the machines for cost reasons, since delivering several parcels to one machine is quicker than bringing parcels to each household individually.

"Of course, a parcel costs less when delivered to a Packstation," said Hagleitner.

At the same time, she emphasized that customers have a choice on the kind of delivery service they receive.

DHL is putting pressure on its competitors with the pace of expansion. DPD, GLS and Hermes tried their hand at joint stations in the past decade, but the project was discontinued after a few years.

Now DPD and GLS are making a new attempt in a joint venture, while Hermes is being left out for the time being.

"We are seeing strong growth in the out-of-home segment," said DPD manager Michael Knaupe, referring to vending machines and parcel stores. "People no longer want to have to wait for the parcel carrier to ring their doorbell, they want to be flexible and pick up their parcel themselves."

One challenge is the German bureaucracy.

"In Poland and Estonia, anyone can set up vending machines in no time at all, but in Germany you have to submit various applications to the authorities - and it takes time for these to be approved," Knaupe said.

Given the industry's ambitious expansion plans, might streets, squares and train stations start to get a little crowded?

Not at all, said myflexbox boss Lukas Wieser. He anticipates a need for at least 100,000 parcel stations in Germany. He pointed to Poland, where there are already more than 40,000 parcel machines - and rising.