Yodel has reported a surge in C2C volumes, with the independent parcel carrier now delivering almost 600,000 parcels a week - a 132% increase since July 2022.
An increase in the number of people selling items online has contributed to the spike, the firm said, with people making more use of marketplaces such as Vinted and eBay.
It predicted that the trend could continue as more people plan to give 'pre-loved' gifts for Christmas. New research involving 19,000 respondents found almost 2 in 5 (39%) are looking to online marketplaces for presents.
Yodel has invested in its C2C technology and infrastructure in recent years, it said, and the rise in parcel volumes has been supported by the introduction of print-in-store labels.
The Yodel Direct service offers Store-to-Store and Store-to-Door services for customers sending parcels weighing up to 10kg.
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The ongoing shift of consumers towards online shopping has also seen B2C parcel volumes continue to grow. Volumes for recipe boxes that spiked by 173% during the pandemic have continued to rise (73%), while volumes in fashion parcels have increased by 63% in the year to date.
Yodel’s customer service operations have also seen further investment. The customer app now provides two-hour delivery windows and provides customers with delivered images, which are also being shared with clients via the eRin service, causing a 47% fall in the number of queries resulting in driver interviews.
The time taken for end-to-end resolution of customer queries has also fallen by almost 50%.
Yodel chief exectuive Mike Hancox said: “Much of the growth in volumes we have seen from Yodel Direct has been driven by the growing numbers of people selling online to boost their income. We have also seen micro sellers that began operating during the pandemic continuing to do so since, further driving the success of our C2C deliveries.
“In the coming year, we expect to see greater integration of technology into our services to further improve customer experience. We have appointed a dedicated Out of Home Director to lead on expanding our offering; a key focus for us as we look to provide greater convenience for customers to collect and post their parcels at a time that suits them.”
