Periodic Reporting for period 2 - Citibox (Revolutionising the way in which parcels are delivered)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2020-10-01 al 2021-09-30
Last mile delivery is extremely inefficient representing 53% of the total transportation costs. Over 80% of eShoppers report delays, incidents or delivery failures, which have a strong negative impact on all stakeholders involved. Carriers incur higher costs due to multiple delivery attempts, which in turn have a strong impact on the liveability of cosmopolitan cities, increasing traffic congestion and levels of harmful emissions. Online shoppers on the other hand are unhappy with delayed packages or having to pick up their packages from different locations, and this negative shopping experience has an adverse effect on online retailers as online shoppers are unable to realise the full potential of the convenience that online shopping brings.
Citibox is revolutionising the way parcels are being delivered. Our cost efficient technology allows us to install a dense network of smart parcel boxes inside residential buildings across major cities. Providing carriers with a simple and radically more efficient delivery method inside residential buildings means users are able to get their packages on time without the need to be home or the hassle of having to pick up missed parcels from alternate locations. They simply pick up their parcel from the Citibox parcel box in the lobby of their building at their convenience.
Citibox is revolutionising the way parcels are being delivered. Our cost efficient technology allows us to install a dense network of smart parcel boxes inside residential buildings across major cities. Providing carriers with a simple and radically more efficient delivery method inside residential buildings means users are able to get their packages on time without the need to be home or the hassle of having to pick up missed parcels from alternate locations. They simply pick up their parcel from the Citibox parcel box in the lobby of their building at their convenience.
This report covers the work performed in each of the five Work Packages during year 2 of the 2 year project. In Work Package 1, we kept our project team configuration, in order to guarantee the most effective way to deliver the project, and the cross-functional squad structure for our technical teams. In the same way, our international expansion team continued the partnership with Deloitte, working together for closing partnerships that allow our international growth.
In Work Package 2, we have focused on improving the way Citibox interacts with users and clients. On one hand, acting on the incidents that users experience, in such a way that we have achieved that the user himself is able to resolve an important part of the incidents without the need to interact with Citibox, that is, autonomously and easily. On the other hand, facilitating the use of the platform to concierges and territorial administrators, through new functionalities and redesign of flows in the couriers web app. Finally, in the same way that we streamline courier deliveries through integrations and the couriers web app, we have also wanted to streamline and optimize the collection process for end users, by completely redesigning and developing their application from scratch.
In Work Package 3, we focused on our first pilot in Paris and the beginning of our operation there, the expansión approach and new business model opportunities. Also, we have included the description of the improvements done on our platform from its initial status, incorporating knowledge and learning from the pilots, and the specific adaptations of the selected markets for other pilots.
Work Package 4 is about providing overall support to the project activities in every aspect that can impact the commercialization and exploitation of the project result. In Period 2 this involved:
● Communication actions: International events (which continue to suffer date changes due to the COVID situation), that are key in Citibox strategy to promote our solution, and the use of other communication channels to enhance market positioning.
● Go-to-market strategy evolution, in which flexibility is the key factor, after our first steps outside Spain and the discussions with potential partners around the world. That’s why a new business model has been launched in France, a different approach was developed for Czech Republic, and other options have been considered to add more flexibility to adapt to the various requests we had from companies interested in working with Citibox in Europe and outside. Also, we share the different analysis done regarding the existing opportunities in European cities and in cities outside Europe.
● Update on the negotiation status with carriers, given the still existing impact from the COVID situation.
● Update on the financial support strategy, keeping in mind our double objective (Platform financing and Infra financing), and sharing our achievements and next steps on it: Series B successfully launched for Platform financing, and more than 100 potential candidates reached out for Infra financing, with already running exclusive negotiations with an international private equity fund.
In Work Package 2, we have focused on improving the way Citibox interacts with users and clients. On one hand, acting on the incidents that users experience, in such a way that we have achieved that the user himself is able to resolve an important part of the incidents without the need to interact with Citibox, that is, autonomously and easily. On the other hand, facilitating the use of the platform to concierges and territorial administrators, through new functionalities and redesign of flows in the couriers web app. Finally, in the same way that we streamline courier deliveries through integrations and the couriers web app, we have also wanted to streamline and optimize the collection process for end users, by completely redesigning and developing their application from scratch.
In Work Package 3, we focused on our first pilot in Paris and the beginning of our operation there, the expansión approach and new business model opportunities. Also, we have included the description of the improvements done on our platform from its initial status, incorporating knowledge and learning from the pilots, and the specific adaptations of the selected markets for other pilots.
Work Package 4 is about providing overall support to the project activities in every aspect that can impact the commercialization and exploitation of the project result. In Period 2 this involved:
● Communication actions: International events (which continue to suffer date changes due to the COVID situation), that are key in Citibox strategy to promote our solution, and the use of other communication channels to enhance market positioning.
● Go-to-market strategy evolution, in which flexibility is the key factor, after our first steps outside Spain and the discussions with potential partners around the world. That’s why a new business model has been launched in France, a different approach was developed for Czech Republic, and other options have been considered to add more flexibility to adapt to the various requests we had from companies interested in working with Citibox in Europe and outside. Also, we share the different analysis done regarding the existing opportunities in European cities and in cities outside Europe.
● Update on the negotiation status with carriers, given the still existing impact from the COVID situation.
● Update on the financial support strategy, keeping in mind our double objective (Platform financing and Infra financing), and sharing our achievements and next steps on it: Series B successfully launched for Platform financing, and more than 100 potential candidates reached out for Infra financing, with already running exclusive negotiations with an international private equity fund.
Citibox is the only solution that makes it economically and technically feasible to install smart parcel boxes in every residential building to help solve the last-mile problem. The SME Instrument is permitting us to radically accelerate the scalability of our technology, both the electronic lock as well as the IT backend infrastructure, to allow massive market expansion across Europe. It will also allow us to perform demonstrative pilots in major European cities to test the upscaled product and gain important international traction to attract additional investments to launch the infrastructure development in these cities.