Portfolio Lead

Ann Summers add discreet deliveries with InPost. 13 Oct 2026 InPost have partnered with British retailer Ann Summers to put more control into customers' hands at checkout, giving them the freedom to choose where and how they receive their order. For those living in a flatshare or university accommodation, living with parents, buying a gift or simply preferring to collect their purchase themselves, InPost Locker delivery offers an alternative to the front door. Ann Summers customers will be able to choose 48-hour delivery to an InPost Locker at checkout, select the location that works best for them and collect at a time that suits them. Customers will also be able to make returns through InPost's extensive network of over 16,000 lockers. The partnership brings together two brands known for challenging convention. Ann Summers has spent more than 50 years disrupting the high street, pushing boundaries and empowering its customers, while InPost is reshaping the delivery experience around how people live and shop today. For Ann Summers customers, locker delivery offers another option alongside traditional home delivery, whether they are collecting around a commute, choosing a location close to home or simply prefer to pick up their order themselves. The launch comes as out-of-home delivery becomes an increasingly established part of ecommerce. InPost research found nearly 60% of Brits experience delivery-related stress, with consumers spending an average of 3.2 hours every month waiting at home for deliveries. The partnership extends that shift into a new retail category, giving Ann Summers customers another way to receive their purchases while making the delivery experience more adaptable to their lifestyle. Ann Summers has spent decades disrupting the high street and empowering its customers, while InPost is challenging the way delivery has traditionally worked. Bringing those two mindsets together makes this a really exciting partnership. Customers expect choice throughout the shopping journey, and delivery should be no different. By adding InPost Locker delivery, Ann Summers is giving its customers greater freedom to choose the location and collection time that works best for them. - Jon Nicholson, Chief Commercial Officer, InPost UK For retailers, delivery is an increasingly important part of the overall customer experience. Giving people more options at checkout creates a more flexible, modern shopping journey - and that is exactly where InPost continues to push the category forward. For more than 50 years, Ann Summers has pushed boundaries and championed empowerment, confidence and choice for our customers. Our partnership with InPost brings that same approach into another part of the shopping journey, giving our customers even greater freedom over how and where they receive their orders. We want every interaction with Ann Summers to feel empowering and on our customers' terms. InPost Locker delivery gives them another simple and flexible option, putting even more choice into their hands. - Maria Hollins, CEO, Ann Summers

InPost will open a Paczkomat for you on its own. Without human intervention. InPost is introducing a small revolution in customer service. A virtual agent can talk to customers and, if needed, can even help with remotely opening a Paczkomat. 08.10.2026 15:39 InPost has opted for greater automation in customer service and has introduced an artificial intelligence agent for customers calling with a problem or question. However, it will not be just another annoying bot that can only redirect the problem to a human consultant. It can even determine that we are near a Paczkomat and remotely open the locker. InPost's agent understands more than a classic bot. Classic voice assistants on hotlines have been available for many years. However, only recently have companies handling customer service begun using more advanced systems based on artificial intelligence, whose capabilities go beyond predefined scenarios. InPost's new agent, in addition to a regular conversation with the customer, allows specific actions to be performed in the courier company's system. For this purpose, the capabilities of large language models are combined with control over functions that previously were accessible mainly to consultants. What does this mean in practice? That when calling the hotline, we can expect something more than the bot giving us simple information. The system can verify the calling customer, check shipment status, and even help redirect a parcel if the customer has a problem with that. The AI agent can also change the delivery date. This is very useful, because the mobile app does not allow it. By far the most interesting option of this solution is that the agent can independently remotely open a Paczkomat during a conversation with the customer - e.g. if something fails and the app does not work. The system can also send a pickup code (e.g. by SMS or email), provide the courier's phone number, or change the shipment status.

Delivery companies focus on targeted OOH investments. Leading parcel operators are taking a selective approach to their out-of-home delivery investments with a mix of network expansion, new services and acquisitions, a panel discussion with senior executives from InPost, Omniva, Pos Malaysia and Shipsy at the Parcel + Post Expo Leadership Conference made clear. Their comments at last week's event in London came amid major strategic moves in the fast-growing European OOH market, including most notably Royal Mail's acquisition of Quadient's UK lockers network and DHL Group's acquisition of Austrian carrier-neutral locker operator Myflexbox, which was announced today (October 1). InPost: organic growth before M&A