International Distribution Services Ltd results for the year ended March 2026

[POSTMAN]

https://www.internationaldistributionse ... arch-2026/

Key points

• Group revenue was £13.6 billion, up 3.6%

• Royal Mail revenue was up 2.6% year-on-year to £8.4 billion

• GLS revenue was up 5.2% year-on-year at £5.2 billion

A YEAR OF PROGRESS: IDS DELIVERS ROBUST PERFORMANCE IN CHALLENGING MARKET CONDITIONS, DRIVEN BY GROWTH IN PARCELS AND RAPID EXPANSION OF OUT–OF-HOME NETWORKS

International Distribution Services (“IDS”) today announces its full year results for the year ended 29 March 2026. IDS continues to consolidate its position as a global logistics player across more than 50 countries, delivering for customers at scale whilst transforming the business for future growth.

Key highlights:

• Group revenue was £13.6 billion, up 3.6%, with an adjusted operating profit of £222 million, down £56 million year-on-year.

• Royal Mail revenue was up 2.6% year-on-year to £8.4 billion. Adjusted operating profit was broadly flat at £5 million, despite the impact of National Insurance increases and revenue from election mail in the prior year.

• GLS revenue was up 5.2% year-on-year at £5.2 billion. Adjusted operating profit was down, at £237 million, due to regulatory changes in Italy and a softer economic environment in Canada. This was partly offset by a good performance in the rest of the business.

Continued investment in out-of-home, automation and AI innovation to ensure the Group is well-placed to support the consumer shift towards the convenience of lockers and shops:

• Royal Mail has the UK’s largest out-of-home network with c.30,000 parcel points, including lockers, shops and parcel postboxes. The company remains on track to reach 45,000 out-of-home locations by 2030.

• GLS expanded its European out-of-home network to over 110,000 locations representing year-on-year growth of 30%.

Martin Seidenberg, Group Chief Executive Officer at IDS, said:

“This has been a year of real progress for IDS on many fronts, as we invest to build a modern, global logistics business at scale. Following Royal Mail’s agreement with the unions we are rolling out Universal Service changes across the UK which will lead to a more efficient, reliable and sustainable service for our customers. GLS continues to grow revenue and parcel volumes despite challenging conditions in parts of Europe, underlining the resilience of the Group and the strength of our international network.

“The continued growth of marketplaces and e-commerce is increasing demand for convenient, flexible delivery and returns solutions across Europe. Our unique multi-channel offering — spanning home delivery, lockers, shops and parcel postboxes — positions the business strongly to meet evolving customer needs. We are investing to enhance that proposition further and, with EP Group’s backing and the commitment of our people, we remain focused on delivering convenience, reliability and sustainable long-term growth across our networks.”

Operational highlights

Royal Mail laying foundation for long-term growth

• Out-of-home volumes were up 40% year-on-year, driven by increased use of the growing network of c.30,000 parcel points including 3,300 lockers and 8,500 Royal Mail Shops, and ongoing growth in e-commerce and marketplace sales.

• Total parcel volumes increased 7% to 1.4 billion in 2025/26. Marketplace performance is expected to remain a key driver of growth as a result of multi-year agreements with e-commerce retail platforms including Vinted and eBay.

• Addressed letter volumes (excluding election mail) declined 10%, reinforcing the need to transform the business with the rollout of Universal Service reform to ensure a more sustainable and reliable delivery model.

• Universal Service reform deployment now underway across c.1,200 delivery offices following agreements with the Communication Workers Union and Unite CMA.

• Recently published Quality of Service Improvement Plan sets out pathway to meet regulatory targets by April 2027 and includes a commitment to investing £500 million over five years to improve service for customers.

• Upgrades to technology, including at parcel hubs in Warrington and Daventry, supporting Royal Mail’s capacity to process c.8 million parcels a day across the operation.

GLS infrastructure investment and AI optimisation

• Out-of-home network grew 30% year-on-year to over 110,000 locations, parcel locker network expanded by 40% to c.32,500 units. c.29% of B2C parcels were delivered to or collected from out-of-home locations in March3.

• Strong international and B2C growth and continued momentum across key ecommerce platforms supported out-of-home volume growth.

• Leveraging technology and AI to improve operational efficiency and make deliveries faster and more reliable. New driver app with precise last-metre locations for pick-up and drop-off, improving driver productivity by up to 15 minutes per route.

• Delivering infrastructure projects at hubs in Canada, Denmark, Germany, Hungary and Spain to support growth.

• Cross-border market remains a significant growth area. Acquisition of 35% stake in ePost Global, establishing strategic partnership enabling seamless transatlantic shipping between the US and Europe, alongside established partnership with SF Express in Asia Pacific.

[scotchy1962]

Now considering this is now privately owned and no shareholders to keep onside you would think that any profit would keep the owner happy, but i guess not.
But it does prove one thing i always suspected, the numbers quoted by previous owners perhaps weren't quite correct and perhaps the losses actually didn't exist.
Creative accounting can hide a multitude.
It also proves the current model is making money and perhaps the massive change called for is just for massive profits. and not actually required.
Making your money off the backs of others, literally, maybe Trams and co have a point when they start the call for the workers to rise.

[tramssirhc]

Now considering this is now privately owned and no shareholders to keep onside you would think that any profit would keep the owner happy, but i guess not.
But it does prove one thing i always suspected, the numbers quoted by previous owners perhaps weren't quite correct and perhaps the losses actually didn't exist.
Creative accounting can hide a multitude.
It also proves the current model is making money and perhaps the massive change called for is just for massive profits. and not actually required.
Making your money off the backs of others, literally, maybe Trams and co have a point when they start the call for the workers to rise.

Capitalism wants every penny and that's a lot of pennies from 7.1 billion items. Should that impoverish those doing the work so be it. We are absolutely right to demand all that surplus value from our labour. We do the work and we should realise the value of our labour.