E-fulfilment firm Collectpoint claims that it's running way ahead of competitors M-box and Dropzone1.
Director Scott Bellway said his company has attracted more business because its system is simpler to use.
Installing the Collectpoint system onto an e-tailer's home shopping site takes a "matter of hours," said Bell, who has a further 20-30 e-tailers coming on board in the next few weeks to add to the existing 12.
Collectpoint has more than 2,000 c-stores throughout the UK acting as pick-up points for goods ordered online with another 1,500 set to join over the next few months.
Retailers receive a small commission fee (between £1 and £2 a parcel), and many are seeing customers use the service again, said Bell.
But retailers The Grocer spoke to sounded more cautious about the venture.
David Sands, managing director of the David Sands Group in Scotland, and Nigel Mills, managing director of the Midlands and north-east based Mills Group, said they had been ready to participate for some months, but had yet to handle any parcels via Collectpoint.
Through a partnership with German firm Pickpoint, Collectpoint has established a network of 400 live locations in Germany (mostly petrol stations that are not subject to the same limited trading hours as other retailers).
Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic are next to go live, followed by Austria, Switzerland and the Netherlands.
But M-box chief operating officer Andrew Day said Collectpoint had failed to secure partnerships with firms that would generate any volume of traffic through convenience stores, whereas M-box was taking its time to secure deals with "household names".
{{NEWS }}
No comments yet