The specifics of the courier companies in Neoship

Which carrier, or which combination of carriers, should you choose to cover your e-shop's needs and at the same time offer the right mix of shipping alternatives in the cart? We have written down the possible advantages and disadvantages of the carriers we offer in Neoship and that an e-shop can choose from as part of our services.

Packeta

Packeta leads the way in delivering parcels to pickup points and parcel lockers, whose numbers it keeps expanding. Besides that, it has also extended its offering with delivery to an address using its own fleet.

Packeta already has 3,100+ pickup points, so-called Z-Points, in Slovakia, plus more than 1,700 Z-BOXes.

In the Czech Republic there are 10,200+ pickup points and 3,700+ Z-BOXes.

Besides these countries, Packeta has its own pickup points in Hungary, Romania, Poland and Germany. Through partner courier companies, however, it can deliver shipments all over the world.

What can be an advantage:

• Savings on transport costs. Delivery to pickup points is significantly cheaper than courier delivery to an address. The difference can sometimes run into euros.
• Pickup points are very popular with end customers. Wide availability, flexible timing and a lower price are the reasons they choose this type of delivery in the cart.
• Customers can return goods to any pickup point – with the parcel and a link from you, a customer can go to any pickup point and return the parcel conveniently and without extra postage.

What can be a disadvantage:

• If you do not dispatch more than 10 parcels a day, or 250 parcels a month, you have to take the parcels to the nearest Z-Point yourself.
• Likewise, you have to go to your chosen Z-Point to pick up returned parcels.
• Through Packeta you cannot send parcels heavier than 10 kg to a Z-Point, and there are size limits too.
• COD payments are paid out after 15 days, or at two-week intervals.

SPS

The transport company SPS is historically the first courier company in Slovakia and has been offering its services since 1992. It is also the largest express parcel carrier. Its network currently consists of 27 regional branches (depots) and it has more than 750 courier vehicles on the road.

What can be an advantage:

• One price for a combined shipment made up of several parcels. If yours is the kind of e-shop that regularly sends several parcels to one address, using SPS is exactly where you can save on transport. SPS does not weigh and price each parcel separately, but uses the combined weight. This way of weighing and pricing often saves an e-shop money.
• COD payments paid out within 3 to a maximum of 5 days of the parcel being delivered.
• Packeta aside, SPS also has a strong network of pickup points – ParcelShops – as well as parcel lockers in the form of partner AlzaBoxes. It currently has more than 1,400 of them in Slovakia in total. Using pickup points with SPS can save you not only a significant amount of money but also time, since the courier comes to collect parcels from pickup points in person as well.

What can be a disadvantage:

• No pickup points abroad
• A seasonal surcharge charged on every shipment during the period from 1 November to 24 December

GLS

GLS ranks among the largest courier companies, with 1 central HUB and 27 depots. It puts great emphasis on sustaining the quality of the environment across its individual GLS branch networks as part of the Climate Protect project.

What can be an advantage:

• Besides Slovakia, GLS also guarantees delivery within 24 hours, or the next working day, in Hungary.
• Strong coverage of EU countries where parcels can be delivered. Besides the well-known European states these include countries such as the Vatican, San Marino, Monaco, Liechtenstein, Gibraltar, Andorra, Cyprus, Turkey, Malta, Albania, …
• COD payments paid out within 3 to a maximum of 5 days of the parcel being delivered.

What can be a disadvantage:

• Compared with the other carriers it has a relatively small network of pickup points in Slovakia.

123Kuriér

The youngest of the courier companies, which over the last 3 years has become known and popular with many e-shops. As with the other carriers, it is standard at 123Kuriér too that parcels within Slovakia are delivered within 24 hours.

What can be an advantage:

• Their own logistics network in the Czech Republic means that a parcel dispatched today will be with the customer in the Czech Republic tomorrow, i.e. within 24 hours.
• Unlike the carriers mentioned above, 123Kuriér is more open to collecting and delivering non-standard packaged and oversized parcels. If you sell various types of unusual garden tools, car parts and the like, 123Kuriér could be exactly the right choice for you (as it says on their website: we will transport a bicycle or a wardrobe). Of course, these things need to be discussed in advance and the terms agreed.

What can be a disadvantage:

• a still relatively small network of pickup points = parcel centres
• COD payments paid into your account only 1–2 weeks after the parcel is delivered

Any recommendation?

We do not want to favour any one carrier. Each has its qualities as well as its shortcomings. We would definitely recommend, though, offering both delivery to an address and delivery to pickup points in your cart. Whether within one courier company or by choosing several. Let the customer decide for themselves which delivery method suits them better.

What benefit does choosing a courier through Neoship bring?

Regardless of whether you choose 1 carrier or several, in the Neoship app you will manage all your parcels under one roof. On top of that, if your e-shop or invoicing system is built on one of the partner or open source platforms, we will set you up with fast dispatch and automated label printing. And there is much more besides.

Would you like to experience it? Write to us and we will be happy to advise you :)