An innovative collaboration to enhance local services
By placing service points in some thirty ESATs - social structures working towards the employment of people with disabilities - Pickup is not only responding to growing demand from online shoppers for parcel pick-up and drop-off services outside the home, but is also making a strong social commitment. The network allows these organisations to raise their profile, generate traffic and bring in additional income through the parcel business.
”The arrival of Pickup has breathed new life into our business. We're no longer merely a sheltered workplace, but a real player in neighbourhood life. This interface with the outside world is a tremendous means of inclusion for our employees.”
Aude de Clermont-Tonnerre, director of ESAT Hovia Paris 16th district
A rewarding learning curve
This partnership offers disabled workers the opportunity to develop new skills.
“Our users acquire invaluable expertise in customer relations and organisation. It's a real springboard towards independence through employment!”
explains Cédric, a workshop supervisor at the partner ESAT.
Workers' testimonials speak volumes. Rose, a Pickup coordinator in an ESAT, stresses:
‘It's a very fast-moving business. You learn to adapt and respond to customers in the best possible way.” For Asmahane, it was a rewarding experience: “At first, I was admittedly a little shy. I was timid. But little by little, I built up my self-confidence. Now I can help customers with their parcels. I enjoy talking with them.'
Training and support: the key to lasting success
The success of this project is down to tailor-made support. Aware of the challenges faced by and specific needs of ESATs, the Pickup teams are working to train workers in the various tasks involved in running a service point. From taking delivery of parcels to greeting customers, through process control and the use of Pickup digital tools, nothing is left to chance.
”Training is dispensed gradually, and suited to the nature of each ESAT. By starting with simple tasks and gradually increasing the complexity, we have enabled workers to increase their self-confidence and acquire skills. Some of our ESAT service points now handle up to 150 parcels a day,’
explains Sylvie Azoulay, a regional Pickup coordinator.
This personalised approach is supported by regular monitoring and a responsive hotline, ensuring the continuity and quality of service.
A promising outlook
Building on the success of these first rollouts, Pickup aims to extend this partnership to a hundred ESATs in France by 2026, and increase the number of joint projects. For instance, the company plans to extend this collaboration to other fields - the idea being to eventually create a virtuous ecosystem which is beneficial to all.
“We're very happy with this partnership, which opens the way to new forms of collaboration! More than a mere extension of our network, this is concrete proof that it is possible to reconcile economic performance and positive social impact, for a more responsible and inclusive economy. "
Maxime d'Hauteville, Chairman of Pickup
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About Pickup
Pickup is a subsidiary of La Poste group via its GeoPost division, and operates France’s leading parcel service point and locker network, with 17,000 service points and over 3,500 parcel lockers. Pickup service points receive daily deliveries from the carriers Colissimo, Chronopost and DPD France. Pickup point delivery is offered by over 90,000 online retailers, such as: Vinted, Veepee, Showroomprivé, Sarenza, CDiscount, Zalando, Amazon, Orange, Nespresso, i.run, Sephora, Mango, Decathlon, and more. Pickup is also developing an array of solutions to meet the challenges of urban logistics, not least in partnership with the retail and mass retail sectors. Through the various divisions of Geopost (La Poste group's international parcel delivery network and the market leader in Europe), the Pickup network is also present in 30 countries around the world, with more than 120,000 service points. Pickup, whose head office is in the Paris region, employs 400 people.
For more information, please refer to the Pickup website
