Big retailers like Amazon to “vertically integrate delivery services”

Christmas parcel volumes have increased 421% since 2008 according to courier comparison website Parcel2Go.com.

In December 2013, the number of parcels which passed through the network rose 13% compared with December 2012, reaching a record high of 335,814 items.

Greenbury sees this booming market bringing change to the logistics market in 2014.

"Retailers will vertically integrate delivery services. As retail becomes an ever more digital affair, we expect to see the big guns imminently launching their own courier networks. Behemoth Amazon has the wherewithal to boast one of the biggest courier networks by this time next year, granting it more control and a second source of revenue. In an age when we’re more likely to be in front of a screen than a person when making a purchase, the added opportunity for customer interaction will be a valuable asset in building brand loyalty.”

Leading retailer John Lewis is also looking to decrease its reliance on third party delivery partners in the coming years, said operations director Dino Rocos at a recent retail and home delivery event.

Greenbury also said drop shops, Click and Collect, Collect+ and parcel lockers all enjoyed a meteoric rise in 2013 and this is a trend that is going to continue apace in 2014.

"They are quickly becoming an absolute necessity as e-tailers come to the realisation that the convenience consumers enjoy of buying online is often negated by the inconvenience of having to go out of their way to collect. These services are also capable of practically eradicating failed deliveries – something which currently comes at a huge financial cost to parcel companies, not to mention the environmental cost of the extra miles covered.”