MAIL

Strategy

Full liberalisation of the German mail market came into effect on 1 January 2008. MAIL is actively consolidating its position as the top provider of mail and parcel services in Germany: "The Postal Service for Germany (Die Post für Deutschland)". In addition opportunities in liberalised markets outside Germany continue to be evaluated.

We have three strategic approaches aimed at meeting the challenges of our business, both today and in the future. 

1. Securing our core business

We cut costs wherever possible and sensible, and enhance our business by launching new products and perpetuating strong customer relationships. We also retain the high quality of our services whilst protecting the environment. Ideally, we search for solutions that meet several goals at once: a new generation of machines in our mail centres, for instance, not only raises the level of automation and thus quality but also lowers production costs and carbon (CO2) emissions.

Proximity to our customers is important to us. We operate the largest network by far of fixed-location retail outlets in Germany, consisting of some 17,000 outlets and sales points. We are expanding our partnerships with retailers, and we offer fast and easy online access to our mail and parcel services. Over the next three years, we will expand our network of around 2,500 Packstations by another 150 machines.

2. Making our network more flexible

To ensure that the earnings contribution of our mail business remains stable in the future as well, we need to fundamentally change our network to make the costs more flexible. In 2009, we tested procedures for enabling us to respond to fluctuating or declining volumes without sacrificing quality. During the summer holiday period, we combined carrier routes, relocated mail sorting to neighbouring mail centres and downsized our overnight airmail network. We will repeat those procedures that proved effective as necessary. Moreover, we plan to expand our parcel network and render it more flexible in the interests of our customers.

3. Growing in digital markets

We are taking advantage of our expertise in physical communications to offer competent electronic communications. The internet is already facilitating customer access to our services. They can calculate and purchase postage and also locate retail outlets and Packstations online and by mobile telephone. In addition, starting in 2010 we will begin offering the letter on the internet, a binding, confidential and reliable form of written electronic communication.

We intend to continue participating in the growing internet advertising market. We already offer small and medium-sized enterprises a platform for local services at www.allesnebenan.de as well as the option of calculating costs and placing advertisements in a variety of media using our easy-to-use Werbemanager (advertising manager). In our parcel business, we are developing solutions for internet sales. Customers can go to www.meinpaket.de for easy, secure and transparent online purchasing and payment. Parcel recipients receive advance notifications of when their parcels will arrive. In the future, they will even be able to choose where and when they wish to receive their parcels.