An “encouraging” $93-million increase in parcel revenue was not enough to offset the continued erosion of Canada Post’s transactional mail and direct mail business in 2013, as the organization reported pre-tax losses of $269 million.
The Canada Post Group of Companies, which includes its non-wholly owned Purolator, SCI Group and Innovapost businesses, reported an operating loss of $193 million for the year.
Transaction mail volume—comprised primarily of letters, bills and statements—fell by 230 million pieces (5.3%) last year, while direct marketing revenues were down 2.8% and volume was down 1.5% from the previous year.
Canada Post said it delivered 1.3 billion fewer pieces of domestic lettermail last year than it did in 2006, despite the fact that the number of addresses it delivered to increased by 1.2 million in the same time period. Canada Post delivered 191 million fewer pieces of domestic lettermail in 2013 than it did in 2012, with no projected end in sight.
Canada Post president and CEO Deepak Chopra said the planned introduction of community mailboxes will create additional opportunities in direct mail through the introduction of product samples and other innovations.
“Even in the digital era, direct mail has a strong future, as businesses seek to place their messages directly into the hands of the busy Canadians they need to reach,” said Chopra in the organization’s annual report.
Canada Post continued to promote direct mail to small, medium and large businesses in 2013, with its BounceMe campaign intended to showcase the medium’s power. This year’s marketing efforts will place an emphasis on direct’s role in multimedia advertising, said the organization.
Parcel delivery remained the one bright spot for Canada Post, with revenues increasing 7.2% and volume increasing by five million pieces. The 2013 holiday season was particularly strong, with Canada Post delivering over one million parcels on six different occasions during the six-week period—up from two days in 2012. Overall parcel volume in the period increased by three million pieces compared to the year-earlier period.
