Abstract:

The development of information and communication technologies enables the growth of e-commerce. The global value of this market continues to increase, indicating the high popularity of making purchases in this manner. One of the key components of e-commerce is the method of delivery for the ordered goods. These delivery methods have also evolved, offering customers an increasing number of options for receiving their purchases. These include home delivery by courier, collection from pick-up points often located in local shops or kiosks, in-store pick-up, or delivery to a parcel locker. Parcel lockers provide customers with the ability to collect their orders regardless of store opening hours or their presence at home. This increases the flexibility of collection, making it a popular delivery option. In recent years, there has been a dynamic increase in the number of parcel lockers deployed in urban areas, along with the entry of new operators offering their delivery services. This article focuses on the development of parcel lockers in the core cities of the Metropolis GZM. Two research questions were formulated for this study: how many parcel lockers are there, and how has their number changed over three six-month periods from October 2023 to October 2024? The article presents the number of parcel lockers operated by the five largest companies in Poland in the GZM core cities in October 2023, April 2024, and October 2024. Additionally, the number of parcel lockers was recalculated per 1,000 inhabitants and per square kilometre of each city, and skewness was calculated. The results indicate that the increase in the number of parcel lockers was more dynamic between the first and second analysed periods. An increase in the number of lockers was observed in all core cities, along with a trend toward a more balanced market share among individual operators. In terms of skewness, slight right- and left-sided deviations were noted; however, the distribution of parcel lockers across the cities is relatively even. This article may serve as a foundation for further, in-depth research concerning the location of parcel lockers.