All in the delivery: Sydney startup on a mission to provide marketplace for couriers

On a mission to provide small businesses with better courier options, Sydney startup PPost incorporates GPS and crowd power to provide more flexible, transparent and speedy services than traditional courier companies.

PPost chief executive Wayne Wang told StartupSmart the app intended to personalise the courier service and provide people with new opportunities to capitalise on their free time.

“We’re trying to create a marketplace for anybody who wants to provide courier services,” says Wang.

A few years ago, Wang ran a mobile phone repair business that relied on quick delivery of items to and from the central repair centre. Wang says it became very difficult due to the high costs and slow service of traditional courier companies.

Wang wants to resolve these issues by using PPost to provide people and businesses with more personalised, cost-effective and convenient delivery options.

He says PPost uses sophisticated software for its live bidding system and real-time destination display which integrates GPS technology and Google Maps. It also features online chat and push notifications to keep both parties updated at each stage of the process.

“Our app tells you exactly where your parcel is,” he says.

Couriers on PPost are only paid when the job is completed and confirmed by the customer.

“We’re making the whole delivery process a lot more transparent by breaking the boundaries between runners and customers,” says Wang.

The door-to-door pick-up and delivery industry has an estimated value of $80 billion in Australia. The growing demand for crowdshipping has inspired a global trend in peer-to-peer startups like MeeMeep, Swift, Zipments, Deliv and, now, PPost.

PPost’s six-member team is made up of HR, digital marketing and tech-startup experts with experience in global companies like Virgin and Unilever.

“We have a very solid plan in place. The next step will be expanding the platform to other cities in Australia,” he says.

PPost is expected to open up to Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth in early 2015.

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