Czech Post had 420,000 parcels in its distribution network over the weekend, which is about 2.5 times more than in the standard period. The pre-Christmas rush is now peaking, but it is weaker than in previous years. CEO Roman Knap told reporters at the main sorting office in Malešice on Tuesday.
The post office expects 54 million parcel shipments for the whole year, which is about two million less than last year. But deliveries in previous years were affected by COVID, which caused people to send more items by post.
By contrast, the Post Office has seen a steady decline in traditional writing, replacing electronic forms of communication. But online postcard delivery is growing, where the sender sends an electronic photo, and the Post Office creates a postcard from it.
There has also been a decline in the number of items sent from abroad, especially packages from e-shops in non-EU countries such as China, the USA, and the UK. For these countries, the exemption from paying customs duty and VAT for small parcels up to €22 is no longer valid.
According to Knap, the post office did not hire any temporary workers this year. It handled the pre-Christmas rush hour with its agency employees by setting up logistics processes. About a third of all shipments pass through the central hub in Prague-Malesice.
The post office has set Wednesday, December 21, as the decisive day for delivering a parcel before Christmas. Some other carriers guarantee delivery for submitted parcels by Tuesday, December 20.