PUDO Inc. (CSE:PDO) (OTCQB:PDPTF) North America’s first carrier-neutral Pick-Up Drop-Off Network is pleased to announce the integration of several more convenience-type stores into the Company’s coast-to-coast Network of authorized representatives. “Each new convenience or neighbourhood store we engage in becoming a flag-bearing PUDO Point is strategic, moving tens of thousands of North Americans closer to quick and convenient pick-up and return of their online shopping purchases,” says PUDO CEO Kurtis Arnold.

Arnold, formerly a master architect of national air traffic control, leads a team of fellow experts in disruptive logistics who have come together to re-imagine and re-map the last-mile gridlock plaguing North America’s $500B e-commerce ecosystem. “Online shopping gained popularity impossibly fast – faster than the system of parcel delivery and returns could manage, or change and adapt. We saw this first in the more mature, densified markets of Europe, and knew that it was just a matter of time before Canada and the United States experienced the same paralyzing retail friction.”

The good news for North American consumers, retailers, and fulfillment centres is that PUDO has hit the ground running, avoiding the costly mis-steps that European operators made navigating growth. “We skipped the bricks and mortar storefront building part of the equation and instead designed a courierneutral system of front-counter-franchising, enabling existing convenience and neighbourhood stores to fly the PUDO flag, activate our logistics technology, and offer online shoppers our suite of convenient last-mile services.  Parcel-traffic analytics dictate when and where we activate points within the Network.”

Participating in the PUDO Network benefits all players in the e-commerce ecosystem – online retailers, fulfillment centres, consumers, couriers, and PUDO Point proprietors, as the technology offers time and operating cost benefits at all levels of the supply chain.  “Now that our technology is solid and we have engaged the loyalty of several large fulfillment centres and online retailers, we are gaining sustainable and collision-free traction,” adds Kurtis. “Our goal is to scale activations to 100 PUDO Points per week until we achieve optimal critical mass, and each new activation accelerates our growth plan exponentially.”

PUDO uses plug and play technology to link existing bricks-and-mortar locations with consumers and retailers, to form a Network.  By becoming part of the Company’s Network, merchants act as Pick-Up, Drop-Off (aka PUDO) locations for e-commerce shipments.  PUDO software provides consumers with a ‘clickable’ option to ship their e-commerce parcels to an, ‘at-home away from home’ PUDO Point, so they can pick up at their convenience, and if return shipment is necessary for any reason, both the consumer and the retailer can be assured of a quick and frictionless transaction.

Recently activated PUDO Points across Canada include community markets and convenience stores in Calgary’s North Glenmore and Canyonlands neighbourhoods; Regina’s Sherwood Estates neighbourhood; Winnipeg’s St. Vital and Kern Park neighbourhoods; Mississauga’s Cooksville and Erindale Woodlands neighbourhoods, as well as locations in towns such as Maple Ridge, Spruce Grove, Collingwood, St. Catharines, and Laval. 

About PUDO Inc.

Founded in 2015, PUDO Inc. is developing North America’s only “carrier-neutral” parcel pick-up/drop-off network. No other company in North America offers staffed retail locations; open for extended hours, to receive consumer deliveries by any carrier. PUDO Points include convenience stores, gas station mini- marts, and grocery stores.

Through the PUDO Point network, consumers can control parcel deliveries – receiving online parcels wherever they want, whenever they want – a fully customizable and convenient method of delivery. When packages arrive at the chosen PUDO Point, customers are automatically notified via text or email that their package has arrived and is ready for pick-up. E-commerce companies and other shippers utilizing PUDO can save on residential “last mile” delivery costs. Consumers can avoid the frustration and inconvenience of missed or stolen deliveries. The final destination of the parcel becomes the safe, staffed retail environment of a PUDO Point.

With a growing network of PUDO Point locations across the U.S. and Canada, PUDO is revolutionizing the North American parcel shipping model. PUDO was recently named one of the Top 20 most innovative public technology companies by the Canadian Innovation Exchange.