eBay UK Managing Director takes helm at groundbreaking e-retail parcel delivery and returns service

Collect+, the breakthrough parcel delivery service which gives online shoppers the choice of collecting and dropping off parcels at local convenience stores, has today announced the appointment of Mark Lewis as CEO. Mark joins Collect+ from online e-retail giant eBay, where he was UK Managing Director.

Mark brings a wealth of online retail and consumer experience to Collect+ as well as the proven ability to drive business development success. Under his leadership eBay UK has enjoyed a return to almost 20 per cent year-on-year growth. Before eBay Mark started his career in advertising working for the award winning St. Luke’s agency before completing an MBA at INSEAD in France. He then worked for Boston Consulting Group, focusing on marketing and strategy projects for the retail and consumer goods industry.  

Mark Lewis says of his appointment:

“Collect+ has enormous potential and I am delighted to be joining the team. Having long worked in retail, I understand the key roles that convenient deliveries and returns play in securing brand loyalty and providing a fantastic customer experience. Collect+ offers retailers and consumers an alternative to the dreaded ‘Sorry we missed you’ slip, which indicates a costly failed delivery combined with disappointment and hassle for the end consumer. In offering greater choice and a service that fits the busy lives of online shoppers, Collect+ has become a breakthrough delivery and returns alternative for retailers and consumers. ”

Set up as a joint venture between PayPoint and Home Delivery Network in 2009, Collect+ allows online shoppers to pick up or drop off parcels at their choice of 3,500 specially selected convenience stores. All stores were chosen because they offer security, convenience and long opening hours.

Collect+ already handles hundreds of thousands of parcels for clients including Littlewoods, Very and MandMDirect.com. Mark Lewis’ role will include continuing to expand the Collect+ customer base among online and catalogue retailers.

By offering both retailers and consumers greater choice on parcel deliveries and returns, Collect+ provides greater convenience and value.  Currently, one in ten deliveries fail on the first attempt, costing retailers £240 million a year, and 44 per cent of consumers admit to having abandoned an online purchase because of lack of trust in the delivery options*.
*IMRG, Valuing Home Delivery Report, Feb. 2010

-ENDS-

Notes to editors
For more information or to set up a personal briefing with Mark Lewis, please contact the Collect+ PR team at the Red Consultancy:
020 7025 6500 / collectplus@redconsultancy.com

About Collect+
Collect+ is a new delivery and returns service giving online shoppers greater freedom and flexibility with the choice of collecting and dropping-off parcels at local convenience stores.

With 98% of Collect+ outlets open 7 days a week normally early in the morning until late at night, the service offers online shoppers the option to pick up or drop off purchases at a time and place convenient to them.

75% of the UK population lives within a mile of a Collect+ store in urban areas, and five miles in rural areas.

Collect+ services are securely delivered by Home Delivery Network, which has 90 years delivery experience, carrying 300,000 items a day, and the retail payment network PayPoint, which handles over a million financial transactions each day through simple, staff operated terminals located in a network of 22,000 shops.

This backing gives Collect+ a mass of experience in logistics, fulfilment and retail as well as making the company entirely scalable in line with client need or in response to seasonal peaks.