Dubai: Emirates to soon roll out door-to-door courier service for individuals

Khaleej Times

15-04-2025

Emirates aims to roll out its recently-announced end-to-end courier express for individuals from next year, a senior official said on Tuesday.
'It's a little more complicated because there's more regulation around personal to personal (delivery). We're not doing that just yet, but it will hopefully come next year. Watch the space,' Dennis Lister, senior vice president of product and innovation at Emirates SkyCargo, told Khaleej Times in an interview.
Due to the safety aspect, the service prioritises known shippers in the initial stage enabling end-to-end integrity of the shipment from start to finish. 'We are building the processes and procedures to cater for them in the future, We'll more likely start in the UAE market first,' he added.
Earlier this month, Dubai carrier launched Emirates Courier Express, an end-to-end delivery solution which will redefine the express delivery experience for individuals.
Emirates Courier Express has access to over 250 wide-body passenger and freighter aircraft to move packages worldwide.
'The biggest USP for Emirates Courier Express is the ability to connect to any destination airport on the network, therefore, getting closer to the customer, reducing the cost of inventory at the final destination and increasing the speed to delivery,' Lister said on the sidelines of the IATA World Cargo Symposium in Dubai on Tuesday.
Lister added that the initial interest has been 'phenomenal' and they have been 'inundated' with requests from customers.
'A lot of people are super interested because we've actually launched to the market the fastest integrated door-to-door parcel cross-border solution in the world. Customers, whether it's a B2B, large or SMEs, they are ready for new solutions to be introduced into the market.'
He added that this is a premium product, and it's going to focus on customers who want things delivered quickly. 'People want stuff delivered quickly. So, when you order something online, they want to know how quickly they can get their product delivered. So what we will do is we'll work with the retailers, and with those retailers, we will then offer a door-to-door solution, which then can cut time by providing on the passenger fleet, because we have so many flights operating from the key markets.'
Adding India, China, Australia
Lister elaborated that Emirates operates more than 138 flights a week from the UK alone.
He noted that the airline is offering this service on a passenger fleet, which makes it a lot more efficient and fast as it flies to more than 148 destinations. 'Therefore, it enables us to connect packages point to point very quickly and efficiently.'
He noted that the programme was not introduced worldwide immediately as it is based on a partner-based model.
'We're using the local final mile and first-mile delivery capability for the partner in that market. We will use a local partner in that market that can collect, pick up the shipments, do the fulfillment, do the clearance, and all these capabilities.'
For now, Emirates Courier Express is active and available in seven markets including the UK, South Africa, UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Oman, for businesses.
'We are starting with the key markets first, and then building out from there. Because it comes down to resources, people, and time. These things take time to develop and deploy. India is the next big market. We're looking at China which is a massive market as well, and then eventually the US. So, that's the direction we're taking,' he said.
Lister revealed that Emirates Courier Express will deliver anything from technology, pharmaceuticals, and other products in the future such as blood, samples of vaccines etc.
'A whole range of different products we can deliver in a whole range of different verticals.'
Emirates Courier Express can deliver goods on the same day at some markets, thanks to its huge network.