Competitor watch

Hermes has opened a new purpose-built parcel distribution depot at Prologis Park in Hemel Hempstead, creating 50 new jobs.

Hermes say the site will further enhance their network and infrastructure ahead of what is anticipated to be their busiest peak season to date.

The 80,000 sq ft depot is the equivalent in size to 11 football pitches and can process more than 130,000 parcels daily for distribution across London and the Midlands. Its launch follows the opening of a £31m Midlands ‘super hub’ in Rugby last year.

Martijn De Lange, CEO at Hermes UK, said: ‘We are extremely proud to officially open our state-of-the-art depot in Hemel Hempstead, which will significantly increase the network capacity in the South East.

‘Last year we handled 9.7m parcels during our busiest week of the year and we expect that number to grow significantly in 2018.’