by Freedonia Industry Studies
July 17, 2020
More people are ordering deliveries – groceries, restaurant meals, cat food, gardening supplies, etc. – than ever before.
Although more people are working or self-quarantining at home, some deliveries are still not completed (perhaps the homeowner was in the backyard and didn’t hear the doorbell, they were bathing the dog, they were trying to get the baby to nap, they were refereeing an argument between the kids, etc) to the great frustration of consumers. Additionally, many are still concerned about the security of their deliveries… especially if they are unable to make it to the door right away.
Instead relying on watching the door, an app notification, or your video doorbell to tell you when your delivery has arrived, more consumers are looking for alternatives. The DIY solution is large plastic totes with signs noting to place deliveries inside. However, those are still not secure.
People who live in multiunit dwellings might have a central package storage area manned by a doorman or other office personnel. Delivery lockers are also increasingly common in urban areas. Despite the deployment of package pickup lockers at third party retailers and other parcel pickup stores in suburban areas, they are not widely available and not generally popular where they are offered as it requires leaving home to retrieve your delivery.
The solution being tested more broadly are home-based, weather-resistant, secure outdoor storage boxes. Some, like BoxLock, can be opened if the delivery person scans the packages barcode into the lock, while others can be opened with one-time numerical, QR, or other types of codes provided by the homeowner.
The increasing delivery need and the ongoing developments in home security options will lead to even more innovations in this area.
For more information and discussion of opportunities, see The Freedonia Group’s extensive collection of off-the-shelf research, including Global E-Commerce Packaging and Safety & Security Alarms. Freedonia Custom Research is also available for questions requiring tailored market intelligence.