PUDO Inc. (CSE:PDO) (OTCQB:PDPTF) North America’s first courier-neutral Pick-Up Drop-Off Network is pleased to announce the signing of a Partner Agreement with a major international third-party logistics company, to undertake a mutually beneficial arrangement to use PUDO’s Network of parcel pick-up and drop-off locations, to resolve costly last-mile e-commerce parcel delivery issues related to failed first-attempt deliveries, and to enable new residential delivery options in targeted markets.

“We are thrilled to reach this important milestone,” says PUDO CEO Kurtis Arnold. “The Agreement symbolizes proof of concept at all levels for us as we integrate them into our Network, first in Ontario and Quebec before expanding across the rest of the country to help our stakeholder partner to provide new efficient services on behalf of their e-commerce clients and their customers.”

Currently, third-party logistics companies act as fulfillment centres for large retailers and marketplace e‑tailers and manage online purchase parcel delivery and reverse logistics. “The PUDO Network of pick-up/drop-off points strategically located very near to where people live, work, play, study, even vacation, act as community staging hubs (think mini-warehouses) for 3PLs – instantly extending their network and shortening the last-mile.  Third-party logistics companies can use these PUDOpoints in a variety of ways.  3PLs operate based on volume and consistency, so the individualized and unpredictable issues related to placing parcels in consignees’ hands when they aren’t home, or facilitating return of unwanted or unsuitable purchases, throws a wrench into the works and contributes to the parcel traffic control gridlock we see and read about as e-commerce experiences double-digit growth annually.”

Under the terms of the Agreement, which the Company anticipates activating in August 2018, PUDO will:

• Provide ‘hold for pick-up by consignee’ service in those cases where parcels are re-directed to a PUDOpoint by the intended recipient or by the courier when they are unable to deliver to the original address.
• Provide secure mini-hub/community staging point services for the 3PL and its couriers and customers to facilitate timely, affordable parcel delivery services.

On all occasions, PUDO’s plug-and-play technology for mobile and desktop will manage multi-platform tracking and logistics, and send notifications directly to consignees, providing pick-up or delivery alerts as warranted.

“We are extraordinarily pleased– after more than two years building a stakeholder network while beta-testing systems and refining our technology – to launch the logistics component of the PUDO Network across all verticals. We will remain focused on excellent and efficient deliverables, and on helping partners extend their networks and customer satisfaction,” 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.