Hermes UK has announced an £11 million investment in its international business, as the global ecommerce market continues to grow.
As part of the investment, the company has created a new dedicated International Division, which will launch a range of integrated end-to-end services including inbound, outbound and reverse logistics to expand the existing offering.
This will be combined with brand new global, cross-border products for retail customers, SMEs, marketplaces and consumers.
To support this expansion, Hermes has opened three new dedicated facilities. A 140,000 sq ft centre in Essex will have the capacity to process around 150,000 parcels a day, while export and import operations will be managed from the new 80,000 sq ft Heathrow site.
The third is based in Utrecht, part of a 80,000 sq ft facility. This will be the main transhipment hub in the Netherlands, with a processing capacity of 70,000.
More than 150 jobs have been created, ranging from warehousing to managerial roles.
Heading up the international division is international managing director Malcolm Barrell, reporting to chief executive officer Martijn de Lange. Barrell brings over 35 years of industry experience to the role, having worked at director level for both DHL and Bpost International, and most recently as chief executive officer for FedEx’s cross border brand, P2P.
READ MORE: Hermes UK revenue surges by almost 70% amid ecommerce boom
Ed Ayyad takes the role of director of international with over 15 years of industry experience in international distribution, most recently as managing director of P2P.
Hermes has also launched a powerful fulfilment platform, which is able to fulfil orders both domestically and internationally from its UK and European sites. It can connect to any website or marketplace, which will now fulfil to 220 countries (up from 190) and is supported by a new international tracking AP which enables customers to access full parcel tracking.
“This is about taking our existing international proposition and elevating it to create a best-in-class solution for our clients that enables us and them to maximise the opportunities that are being created by the fast-growing international e-commerce market,” Hermes UK chief executive officer Martijn de Lange said.
“This is increasingly important post Brexit and as the world starts to reopen following the global pandemic. We are committed to building on our unrivalled domestic success to become a globally recognised brand trading in all territories. We were delighted to launch the proposition by welcoming over 100 leading retailers to our Essex facility this week.”
