Australia Post’s plan to handle online shopping boom

Australia Post is investing $25 million in a brand new parcel facility in Adelaide - to meet the demand for parcels boosted by the unprecedented growth in online shopping in the state.

This will be the company’s biggest operational investment in South Australia ever.

The new site will consolidate operations currently carried out across multiple sites into one state-of-the-art facility, featuring automated parcel processing for the first time ever in the state, significantly boosting parcel processing capacity and improving service standards for residents in South Australia.

Australia Post Group chief executive Christine Holgate said South Australians are shopping online more than ever before, with this investment part of Australia Post’s ongoing efforts to keep up with demand, particularly in growing areas such as Adelaide.

“It is no secret Australians love shopping online, spending over $4.4 billion in April this year alone, and South Australians love it more than most with a huge jump in online purchases during COVID-19,” Ms Holgate said.  

“More than 14,000 South Australian households shopped online for the first time in April, with Adelaide’s postcode alone ranked third nationally by percentage of new online shoppers. This drove the state’s overall online shopping growth figure for the month to an incredible 86 per cent up on last year.

“I am so thrilled to be making this investment as it will be the first time we have introduced any parcels automation in South Australia so it truly will future-proof our operations.”

According to Australia Post’s 2020 Inside Australian Online Shopping Report, South Australians are big buyers of fashion, health and beauty and home and garden products with growth in the state across the three categories up 19.2 per cent, 12.6 per cent and 11.9 per cent year-on-year respectively in 2019.

Preparations for the new Adelaide parcels facility are already underway with the site due to become operational in 2021.

Have you started shopping online for the first time this year? How much of your shopping do you do online now?

5 comments

Recently our family ordered 3 parcels online. The parcel of colouring books arrived torn and dishevelled - the bottom colouring books were also damp.  The pots arrived but they were the wrong ones - even though my invoice saiid I had ordered and paid for the expensive ones, they sent much cheaper ones.  The seeds I ordered took six weeks to arrive and the company I ordered them from was only 40kms from where I live.  Online shopping is a farce as far as I am concerned.

I wonder how all these people can afford online shopping. Most of the stories on TV and Press are about all the people missing out on Jobseeker and I have had 3 on Jobseeker and believe me there was NO money to buy goods online. So who is buying online and like the comment above I have only 1 in my life ordered goods online  (a dress) and it was horrible and nothing like the picture in the advertisement. I also was scammed by a company who offered cheap cosmetic samples and of course I gave them my card details as I was on the phone to Telstra and had been holding for over 40 minutes when this junk ad appeared on screen. Not thinking $9.00 was a lot to take 

I wonder how all these people can afford online shopping. Most of the stories on TV and Press are about all the people missing out on Jobseeker and I have had 3 on Jobseeker and believe me there was NO money to buy goods online. So who is buying online and like the comment above I have only 1 in my life ordered goods online  (a dress) and it was horrible and nothing like the picture in the advertisement. I also was scammed by a company who offered cheap cosmetic samples and of course I gave them my card details as I was on the phone to Telstra and had been holding for over 40 minutes when this junk ad appeared on screen. Not thinking $9.00 was a lot to take 

Sorry to hear about your negative experiences Aussiecarer, but I have never had any issues, if your goods arrive damaged you have the right for replacements.

Jilly B, I would never give my card details over the phone, if a a charity rings up or someone wanting to sell a ticket in something I tell them I will do it online using paypal.

Those who can afford to shop online are the same people who spend in shops but they are not leaving the house as much.

In my opinion once the pandemic stops, so will a lot of online purchasing.

Hence $25 million taxpayer dollars will go up in smoke.

 

Sorry I was not finished. I received the samples in a plain white envelope it contained no details of the sender etc. In less than a week after that I noticed 2 amounts of $128 charged to a company I had never heard of and when finally after lots of diggin to follow up the phone number that was supplied in the ad I discovered that by ordering this $9 package I had apparently signed up for shipments at $128 each. I managed to get those cancelled and refunds sent to my bank but did I have to take a severe stand with them. My advice leave advertisements and online shopping alone and purchase from small traders who are doing it tough and reputable other companies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry I was not finished. I received the samples in a plain white envelope it contained no details of the sender etc. In less than a week after that I noticed 2 amounts of $128 charged to a company I had never heard of and when finally after lots of diggin to follow up the phone number that was supplied in the ad I discovered that by ordering this $9 package I had apparently signed up for shipments at $128 each. I managed to get those cancelled and refunds sent to my bank but did I have to take a severe stand with them. My advice leave advertisements and online shopping alone and purchase from small traders who are doing it tough and reputable other companies.

 

 

 

 

 

I don't think so Suze, online shopping was booming before the pandemic. And why would the $25 million taxpayers money go up in smoke? I don't understand that comment.

JillyB, you were simply scammed, I have seen these types of things before, they offer a great deal and suck you in by saying you only need to pay postage, never fall for it and use paypal online you do not even need to sign up to paypal to use it as long as the website you are using offers it.

Many times I have abandoned shopping because they do not offer paypal.

"Australia Post is investing $25 million in a brand new parcel facility in Adelaide"

Most stuff oline is Chinese ... people will find out majority is junk that fills our garbage.

Yes I agree Paypal or a  reloadable debit card as suggested by johninmelbourne is the way to shop online.

Australia Post will make that money back Suze, you have to rent those parcel lockers.

I avoid buying things made in China as much as possible. I only buy things that will last (hopefully).

 

Wrong Incognito.  Parcel lockers are FREE to use.  You don't rent them.  Just put in the code and collect your parcel.  One of AP's better inventions.  Makes life easier for people to collect stuff out of hours.

Maybe you're thinking of private boxes at the Post Offices.  Totally different beast.

 

 

Okay johninmelb, sorry about that I assumed they would make their money somehow. Thanks for correcting me.

I am one of the lucky ones I guess.  I haven't had any problems with online shopping.

BUT, I don't buy much online, and mostly only very low value items like watch batteries, USB drives, and other bits and bobs.  Cheap as chips and often things that are not available in shops in Oz.  I don't buy clothes or shoes for the very reason that you cannot be sure of the size, fit, material, colour etc.

During lockdown, I needed some basic gym equpment, ie an aerobic stepper, and one of those big inflatable gym balls.  Both items arrived on time and without any problems - specially as the stepper cost $70 and I never spend that much money with online shopping.

I have only had two instances of not receiving my goods, and in both cases, my money was refunded, and a second item sent free of charge.

It is hard to know who is reputable on Ebay, but as I said, I have been lucky.  One guy I deal with sells Family History information CD's.  He's been on Ebay for years, and I have bought from him several times.  Never had a problem.

Like everything else, you have to take care and scrutinise everything. 

As for payment, I use a reloadable Visa card which never has more than a $10 or so balance on it.  That way, no crook can ever debit my card for additional sums of money in the future.

I haven't had any problems with online shopping either Johninmelb.

Everything delivered within the timeframe advertised by the vendor, in good condition and exactly the item ordered.

However, I only order from large reputable businesses I know by name and would NEVER order from unsolicited ads or dubious emails. I check out review sites as well, both for delivery/warranty feedback and to check best prices or deals.

"As for payment, I use a reloadable Visa card which never has more than a $10 or so balance on it."

Very good advice johninmelb

I have bought many things online but you need to make sure it is a trusted seller and pay via paypal which protects you. Also check that the lock shows in the browser. Send them an email and ask questions, if they don't answer in proper English forget it. Check return policies too.

Ebay has many great sellers, bad ones do not last, check their feedbacks, that is what it is there for. I use it a lot and sell a few things on it too. Ebay has a good returns policy in place as well.

 

I also use PayPal but I don't trust them entirely with Ebay.  They often side with the seller and buyers can get short shrift.  Complaints about problems with PayPal and Ebay are all over the net.  I haven't had a problem - yet, but I am wary at all times.

I am a seller on ebay and have found they side with the buyer, so I really don't know about whether the complaints are genuine or not. I am waiting for a response on a complaint from a buyer who wanted to return a book claiming it was damaged, I have contacted the seller 3 times to obtain photos of proof before I refund, and no answer. So I made an offer to refund half the cost and am still waiting for the outcome. I will be blocking this seller once it is resolved because I don't like dealing with people who cannot be bothered answering emails. I have found ebay to be most helpful and usually fair. 99.9% of my buyers are very good. Maybe a lot of the problems are from the past because they are always changing things on ebay to make it fairer too.

I use PayPal when online shopping and have never had a problem. I only buy from trusted sources and have never had a problem. Often much easier than going to the shops especially if you live in a regional area

I agree, paypal makes things a lot safer and they have really good protection in place if you are not happy with your goods, but I have never had any issues. Us regional people do not have the choices that city people do.

 

Love shoppng online, saves me petrol costs and time, but we don't have much choice of shopping in our little town and it is a 40 minute round trip to a bigger town that is also limited. 

 

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