InPost's network of parcel machines® in Poland already has 2000 devices

The first Paczkomat® InPost was erected in September 2009 in Kraków. After seven years, Paczkomat®, numbered 2000, was launched in September 2016 in Piotrków Kujawski, inhabited by 4,500 people. Millions of parcels have been delivered via these machines over a period of seven years. Their number is growing year on year by tens of percent, making Paczkomat® one of the most important parcel delivery channels in Poland, particularly popular with the e-commerce industry.

Paczkomat®

Paczkomat® is a self-service device for receiving and for the increasingly popular self-sending of parcels. At the end of 2015, the Paczkomat® network in Poland numbered 1,600 machines. The current number of machines is 2,000 in the Polish market alone. This is not the end of the development, as InPost is launching an average of 3 new Paczkomaty® per day this year, so that by the end of 2016 the network will number 2,600 units. Between tens of thousands and 200,000 parcels are collected from Paczkomaty® every day.

"I am delighted that Paczkomaty® have become a permanent feature of the landscape of Polish cities. Their development is a natural consequence of the fact that not everyone has the desire or the time to stand in queues at the post office or wait at home for the courier . Until recently, we have concentrated on the largest cities in which a large network of Paczkomaty® machines is already in operation. However, in response to numerous enquiries from smaller towns and cities, we have decided to extend its area of operation, as the inhabitants of smaller towns and cities also want to be permanently independent of the opening hours of post offices and the working hours of couriers. " - said Rafał Brzoska, founder of Integer.pl and creator of the Paczkomat® network in Poland.

The first Paczkomat® was launched in Poland in 2009. When Rafal Brzoska launched the network, not everyone believed that parcel collection in the devices open 24 hours a day would take off in the market. However, time very quickly dispelled all doubts. The development trend in the global e-commerce market has shown that Paczkomaty® are the future and a viable alternative for every consumer who does not want to wait for a courier or stand in long queues at traditional collection points. Today, millions of parcels pass through the Paczkomaty® InPost network every month, and the service is growing by more than 70% year-on-year on the Polish market. The Polish Paczkomat® network is the largest business structure of its kind in the world.

Brzoska emphasises that Integer Group operates not only in Poland. "We put the first Paczkomat® abroad in Bratislava, but currently the most important foreign markets are the UK, France, Italy and Canada. Paczkomat® is probably one of the first Made In Poland products that has a chance to be accepted on all continents. Importantly, Paczkomaty® are manufactured in Poland by our Zabierzów plant, from where they reach such exotic markets as Australia, Malaysia, Iceland and El Salvador".

The farthest placed Parcel Machine® in InPost's own network is located in Vladivostok, exactly at a distance of 10,321 km from Warsaw. This is a greater distance than to Toronto in Canada, where InPost also has its own network of these devices.

Parcel Machine® mark

The success of Paczkomat® is also being closely watched by domestic competitors. The Polish Post Office recently demanded the invalidation of the Paczkomat® mark as it argued that this mark was not suitable for registration with the Patent Office because the word was not distinctive - it is not orginal - which is required for the registration of a new trade mark. Furthermore, Poczta Polska argued as an argument that the word Paczkomat® itself only describes the features of the device and as such is not suitable for registration. However, the decision-making board at the Patent Office rejected this argument in its entirety and found that the word Paczkomat® is both original and unique, thus upholding the registration of this mark in favour of its existing owners.

Parcel abroad

Currently Parcelcells® InPostu operate in 21 international markets on four continents. They have perfectly matched customer preferences, regardless of latitude. From Australia, Malaysia, France, Italy, Spain, the UK and Iceland, to Colombia, Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador - the 'Made in Poland' product is perfectly accepted in country after country. The international network that InPost has created will make cross-border deliveries possible in the near future, opening up new international markets for Polish e-shops and at the same time making it easier for Polish customers to order from foreign shops.