MailPac acquires Global Courier
Published:Wednesday | November 9, 2011 | 12:00 AM
MailPac Express has acquired its closest rival Global Couriers, the company announced on Tuesday.
The terms were not disclosed.
"The acquisition of Global gives us the opportunity to service a broader segment of the online shopping market," said Mark Gonzalez, general manager of Mailpac.
"It is one more step in our drive to ensure that every Jamaican has seamless access to online shopping," he said.
With the acquisition, MailPac said it will expand its client base to more than 75,000 Jamaicans.
The size of the courier market is unknown, but MailPac says the market's potential has broadened with the launch of the Scotia Visa debit card, which it says allows 550,000 persons access to online shopping.
Global Courier Services was founded in 2002 by Christopher and Sara Barrett. Like MailPac, it provides online shopping services with a personal address in the United States where Jamaicans can send their online purchases.
No name change or rebranding of Global Courier is planned immediately, and the company will continue to operate out of its Lady Musgrave location in Kingston, its representatives said.
Together, Global and MailPac are said to account for about 200,000 to 250,000 online purchases annually.
Rise in online shopping
MailPac in its announcement of the acquisition said it has seen a strong rise in online shopping activity - up 45 per cent year on year — and has responded by adding to its warehouse capacity to service the market.
"We have relocated to a 160,000-square foot facility in Miami from our previous 53,000-square foot platform. We have also increased our Miami staff by over 25 per cent," MailPac said in its release.
"Additionally, we are in partnership with a local call centre to provide a larger pool of customer service agents so that every customer can be addressed more timely," the company said.
MailPac operates in Jamaica, Ghana and Nigeria and is planning to enter other Caribbean and West African Markets.
The company, which is owned by Khary Robinson's Norbrook Capital Management, has added five outlets in Jamaica since March and says it plans to open another four.