PUDO Inc. (CSE:PDO) (OTCQB:PDPTF) North America’s first courier-neutral Pick-Up Drop-Off Network is pleased to announce that, as a result of Services Agreement (“Agreement”) with Delivery Net Inc. and ReBOUND Canadian consumers returning purchases from major UK fashion and lifestyle websites including ASOS and Mango, will be able to use PUDOpoints as a preferred parcel return drop off location.  This integration utilizing the ReBOUND returns management platform, represents PUDO’s first foray into UK e-commerce, a thriving ecosystem in which 75% of consumers shop online, spending more per capita than any other nation.

“The signing of this Agreement is significant for PUDO in that it represents confidence in our technology and in our Network,” says PUDO CEO Kurtis Arnold.  The UK is ahead of us in terms of parcel delivery and return logistics with an entrenched PUDO-like network of pick-up/return locations across the UK and Western Europe. In an increasingly global marketplace, they understand the benefits of extending that network overseas and integrating it into their returns protocol.”

Under the terms of the Agreement, PUDO will utilize its Canadian Network of PUDOpoints, located very near to where consumers live, work, play, and study, to receive and consolidate ReBOUND customer parcels designated as ‘returns to the UK’, and return them to Delivery Net’s regional Canadian distribution centres for the return trip overseas.

ReBOUND is a global returns solution supporting 195 countries and territories through a single IT platform.  “We pride ourselves on providing a global returns platform that gives consumers and retailers the confidence to do business from anywhere,” says ReBOUND CEO Graham Best “adding PUDO to our Canadian network of drop off points is a perfect compliment to our model.  We are very excited to have PUDO on board.”

Delivery Net is a major Canadian e-commerce logistics company moving over eight million parcels annually, coast to coast, which includes a network of return parcel hubs for processing e-commerce returns.

In North America, approximately 30% of online purchases are returned for refund or exchange, and online purchases are three-times more likely to be returned than purchases made in-person, in-store.  The reverse-logistics of these returns is an extremely costly component of last-mile shipping, which statistically represents an unsustainable 53% of delivery costs overall*.

“We are extremely confident that our technology and our Network will help reduce logistics costs for ReBOUND customers, and provide Canadian consumers with a more convenient parcel drop-off option than what they are used to.  We know that getting the PUDO name in front of Canadian online shoppers, will help us grow our domestic consumer membership organically, as we grow our logistics Network.” concludes Arnold.

About PUDO

PUDO Inc. is developing North America’s only courier-neutral parcel pick-up/drop-off technology and logistics network, as a means of solving the last-mile parcel-traffic-control gridlock that is crippling the $550B e-commerce sector.   E-commerce is faced with unprecedented cost control issues, based on disproportionately high last-mile delivery costs relating to undeliverable parcels, and parcels returning for refund or exchange.  As labour and fuel costs increase in tandem with parcel traffic and volume, the problem worsens.

PUDO’s team of logistics and parcel traffic management experts have created a market intelligence and trends driven solution comprising courier-neutral plug-and-play technology for desktop and mobile, plus a strategically located network of parcel pick-up and drop-off PUDOpoints for pay-as-you-go use by all players within the e-commerce ecosystem.

Adopting PUDO technology shortens the last mile for the behemoths of e-commerce — fulfillment and distribution centers representing thousands of retailers and millions of consumers — by instantly extending their parcel staging and consolidation network and providing secure ‘near end of the line’ storage for the 30% of e-commerce parcels that are undeliverable on first attempt. PUDO’s technology and network virtually eliminate costs associated with second-attempt deliveries, un-attended parcel theft and spoilage, and mismanaged reverse logistics on returns, and provides couriers, retailers, and consumers with badly needed cost controls, choice, and convenience.

PUDO was founded in 2015 and was recently named one of the Top 20 most innovative public technology companies by the Canadian Innovation Exchange. After two years of industry and market research, and successful beta testing the technology and PUDOpoint geography and protocols with major logistics stakeholders, PUDO is ready to activate its network through strategic partnerships.  Activation will enable all stakeholders within the network to access and control scalable, fluid, strategic consolidation in real time when and where needed, to lower costs and satisfy customer expectations.

About ReBOUND

ReBOUND is a global returns management platform which makes returns easy for retailers and consumers. By leveraging data, technology and its supply chain capabilities it plugs retailers directly into multiple carrier services to handle their returns across the world. Retailers can easily manage and monitor the entirety of their returns lifecycle through one easy to use platform. Managing over 25 million returns transactions per year, ReBOUND’s customers include ASOS, Boden, Feelunique and Gymshark. reboundreturns.com

About Delivery Net

Delivery Net is a logistics service provider that has been providing parcel delivery services for the e-commerce industry for over 20 years. As the market leader in Canada, Delivery Net moves over 8 million parcels through its network on an annual basis. Delivery Net operates six divisions in Canada: Parcel Zone Skipping, Parcel Delivery Network, International Mail, Fulfillment Services, Locker Delivery and Returns Management.