Date: 14 September 2009
Home Delivery Network Expands Services Into Ireland
Home Delivery Network (HDN), the UK’s largest dedicated home delivery and collection service, has announced a partnership with Fastway Couriers - the leading Irish courier company - to extend the network of services it already provides to UK clients into the Republic of Ireland.
The partnership provides a cost competitive fully tracked 48-hour and 72-hour parcel delivery service throughout the Republic. The services have initially been taken up by Shop Direct Group, which transferred all of its business from An Post at the beginning of September following a competitive tender.
Plans are also being considered to roll out further services including time-specified delivery.
Brian Gaunt, chief executive of HDN, said: “We are delighted to be working in partnership with Fastway, the leading couriers in the Republic of Ireland.
“Fastway have the high service ethos that our customers demand and key to the consistent delivery of high service has been the real time tracking capability which Fastway have deployed across their network.
“This has been interfaced into the Home Delivery Network systems to provide clients and customers with real time parcel visibility from pick up in the UK to delivery in the Republic.”
Bobby O Keeffe, chief executive of Fastway, said: “We are delighted to have established a partnership with Home Delivery Network and to have worked with them to provide Shop Direct Group with a solution that provides substantial cost improvements, whilst driving lead time reductions and improved parcel visibility to their customer service teams.
“We are sure that our partnership can bring similar benefits to other UK retailers. ”
Enquiries:
Brunswick Group 020 7404 5959
David Litterick
Teresa Bianchi
Notes to editors:
• Home Delivery Network Limited (HDN) is the UK’s largest home delivery and collection service.
• HDN operates 50 parcel depots covering the UK, four specialised operations sites which distribute heavy and large items throughout the UK, two national sort centres at Shaw in Oldham and Droitwich in Worcestershire, and has its head office located in Whiston, Merseyside.
• Fastway Couriers is an award winning franchise business where the majority of couriers own their own business. Established in New Zealand in 1983, Fastway Courier was launched in Ireland in 2002. Fastway is the world’s largest courier franchise with over 1,500 franchisees in 10 countries and group turnover of $441m.
• Fastway operates 11 depots across the Republic of Ireland and one central sortation centre in Portarlington in Laois County.