Collection available from 500 new Pick-Up Locations

Slough – 15th October, 2014 – Amazon.co.uk today announced an expansion of its Pick-Up Location programme which includes the introduction of its first ever Same-Day collection service. Customers will be able to purchase products and pick up their order later that day as a result of a collaboration with newspaper and magazine distributor Smiths News, a division of Connect Group Plc. For a limited time, Amazon Prime members will be able to use this new pick-up service free of charge.

Same-Day collection allows customers to order as late as 11.45am for collection from 4pm. Customers are notified via email when their order is available and they can collect their parcel up to 11.59pm, depending on the store closing time.

“This is our fastest pick-up service yet,” said Christopher North, Managing Director of Amazon.co.uk Ltd. “We know that Prime customers love fast delivery and the convenience to pick up their order at a time and place that suits them best. This new service brings together both of those great benefits.”

In addition to Same-Day collection, customers also have the option of Express Morning collection with orders placed up to 7.45pm being available for guaranteed collection the next morning – their parcel will be delivered from 6.30am and no later than 9am depending on the store opening time. Standard delivery is also available. All of these collection options are free of charge for Amazon Prime customers until the end of the year. Once the collection option is chosen and the order is placed, a code is emailed to the customer and is simply presented at the store.

This new service is available at more than 500 newsagents and convenience stores which will carry ‘Pass my Parcel’ branding to highlight the service to customers.

Amazon now offers more than 6,000 pick-up locations including ‘Pass my Parcel’ stores, Collect+ stores and Amazon Lockers. Deliveries made to Amazon Lockers nationally have more than doubled in the last year as customers continue to enjoy the flexibility the service provides.

“We have recently added Birmingham International Airport and a number of London tube stations to our ever-expanding list of pick-up locations,” continued Christopher North. “Our intention is to keep rapidly adding to the many thousands of existing pick-up locations to ensure that customers all over the UK are provided with as much choice as possible when it comes to the delivery of their Amazon order.”

Mark Cashmore, Group Chief Executive, Connect Group Plc commented: “We are delighted to be working with Amazon at the launch of Pass my Parcel. Smiths News shares the same passion for customer service and because we visit thousands of local retailers every day, we are uniquely placed to deliver a twice daily pick up service that is second to none in speed and convenience.”  
Amazon Prime offers members unlimited One-Day Delivery on over 7 million items, access to 500,000 Kindle books to borrow and unlimited streaming of more than 15,000 popular movies and TV episodes through Prime Instant Video – the UK’s largest movie and TV streaming service – all for the low price of £79 a year.

Customers who aren’t members of Amazon Prime can opt for Same-Day collection or Express Morning collection for just £4.99 for a limited time.

ENDS

For further information please contact:
Amazon.co.uk Ltd Press Office
Email: pressoffice@amazon.co.uk
Tel: 0208 636 9280

About Amazon
Amazon.com opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995. The company is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalised recommendations, Prime, Fulfilment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire phone, Fire tablets, and Fire TV are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon.

About Connect Group PLC:

Connect Group PLC is a leading specialist distributor operating in large and diverse markets. The Group has three separate divisions, connecting suppliers to customers in an efficient, knowledgeable and service oriented way:

Connect News & Media – Encompassing: Smiths News, the UK’s largest news wholesaling business with an approximate 55% market share, distributing newspapers and magazines on behalf of all the major national publishers as well as a large number of regional publishers. Smiths News serves approximately 30,000 customers across England and Wales, supplying large general retailers as well as smaller independent newsagents; and Dawson Media Direct, an international media direct business supplying newspapers, magazines and inflight entertainment technology and content to over 80 airlines in 50 Countries,

Connect Books - Combining a number of recognised brands in print and digital bookselling, including Bertram’s, Dawson Books and Wordery. A leading distributor of physical and digital books, the division serves over 8,200 customers in approximately 100 countries, with over 200,000 in stock titles and access to over a further 7 million consumer and 20 million academic titles,

Connect Education & Care - A leading independent supplier of consumables through The Consortium and West Mercia Supplies with an approximate 5% market share. The division serves over 30,000 customers with an extensive range of over 40,000 products across a branded, own brand and value range, including stationery, arts and craft and cleaning.