InPost extends locker delivery to Ann Summers customers
Ann Summers has added InPost Locker delivery to its checkout, giving customers an alternative to receiving parcels at home. Shoppers can select a locker location, use a 48-hour delivery option and collect their order when convenient.
The service is intended to address practical challenges associated with home delivery, including shared accommodation, university housing and households where privacy or timing matters. It also provides an option for customers purchasing gifts or those who simply prefer to collect parcels away from their front door.
Delivery becomes a configurable service
The arrangement connects Ann Summers with InPost’s network of more than 16,000 lockers. Customers can use the same out-of-home infrastructure for returns, reducing the need to arrange a collection from a residential address.
For retailers, the operational significance goes beyond another delivery method. Locker networks consolidate deliveries at designated points, while digital checkout tools allow customers to make decisions about location and collection time before an order enters the fulfilment process. That can make last-mile operations more adaptable as ecommerce volumes and customer expectations change.
InPost says its research found that almost 60% of people in Britain experience delivery-related stress. The research also reported that consumers spend an average of 3.2 hours each month waiting at home for parcels. Locker collection is designed to remove that fixed waiting period by shifting the final handover to a location selected by the recipient.
A broader role for out-of-home logistics
The partnership places parcel lockers in a retail category where discretion, convenience and customer control can be especially important. Ann Summers, which has operated for more than five decades, describes the initiative as an extension of its focus on choice. Ann Summers and InPost are therefore combining retail personalisation with a more distributed delivery model.
Jon Nicholson, InPost UK’s chief commercial officer, said delivery choice should form part of the wider shopping experience. Ann Summers chief executive Maria Hollins said the locker option gives customers more control over how and where orders are received.
The launch reflects the growing role of out-of-home delivery in ecommerce. Rather than replacing home delivery, locker collection adds a technology-enabled option that allows retailers to align fulfilment with different lifestyles and operating requirements.
