Evri under fire for failing to pick up parcels from stores

MEGAN HUMPHREY

INDEPENDENT retailers have complained of cramped storage rooms and incidents of verbal abuse after Evri failed to pick up parcels from stores for several days.

75% OF WOMEN FEEL INEQUALITY EXISTS

Retail Express understands the issues began just before Christmas, intensi�ied by Royal Mail strikes, but have yet to be resolved despite disruption ending.

Natalie Lightfoot, owner of Londis Solo Convenience in Baillieston, Glasgow, revealed at one stage she was left with nearly 50 parcels for four days.

“It was a total nightmare,” she said. “I understand the postal strikes caused issues over Christmas, but drivers have been failing to visit us on their routes in the past few weeks.

“I’m a small store and don’t have a huge amount of storage space. My stock room was full, and I couldn’t use it for anything else.”

Lightfoot said on one day in particular, a driver told her they didn’t have any room, and never returned. “We do ring the helpline, but they aren’t able to give you a huge amount of accurate tracking information.”

She added: “A lot of customers understand, but we are faced with trickier people who think that it’s our fault their parcel hasn’t been picked up, which is really frustrating.”

Several others con�irmed to Retail Express they had experienced something similar in recent weeks.

A spokesperson for Evri told Retail Express: ““We can con�irm that we have been in contact with the shop owner, Martin Lightfoot [Lightfoot’s husband] and are investigating his concerns. He has con�irmed he has already seen an improvement.”

IDC administration Allergen law impact

BESTWAY and Londis are directly managing supplier accounts related with dropshipping company IDC to minimise impact, following its collapse.

Administrators were appointed by IDC’s bank, ABN

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Amro, on 1 February, following months of missed payments.

Bestway con�irmed it would bring contracts “inhouse”, and one affected supplier said Londis was managing accounts.

Fraud warnings

COSTS and �ines associated with Natasha’s Law legislation are forcing retailers to rethink how they stock food to go.

Introduced in October 2022, the law means �irms must list ingredients and allergens on packaging of fresh, pre- packed food sold on site. One retailer said a staff member spends “one hour, six days a week making sure labelling is correct”. Another store owner, who was caught with non-compliant muf�ins, no longer stocks food to go.

05 BAT gantries

BAT is looking to roll out new gantries in convenience stores. Messages from reps, seen by Retail Express, show units with drawers for traditional tobacco products, LED-lit shelving for vape and next-gen products with digi- tal media screens above advertising the �irm’s Velo and Vuse brands.

The supplier declined to share further information, but two store owners said they’d been told a launch was expected “around April”.