As postal services focus almost exclusively on parcel delivery, both the ways in which packages are delivered, and the needs of the custom cardboard boxes they are shipped in will also necessarily change to meet the atomising needs of a diverse range of customers.

The Royal Mail “postbox of the future” was a good example of this, giving access to shoebox-sized parcel post capabilities to people closer to their homes, allowing cottage industries to send and return packages without regular trips to a Post Office.

The next major proposed step is a 24-hour parcel post collect and send service in conjunction with branches of the Post Office, as reported by the Eastern Daily Press.

How will they work? How will they change how customers and businesses ship to each other? And how does this change the types of packaging that are best used to ship to customers?

How Will The 24-Hour Parcel Post Trial Work?

The Royal Mail 24-hour parcel post trial takes advantage of delivery lockers located outside of Post Office branches, which are upgraded to provide a wider range of services as compared to traditional delivery lockers or the modernised postbox.

Much of the functionality is similar; each locker has a series of compartments of varying shapes and sizes that both senders and receivers will interact with via a central terminal.

Senders will pay for postage online and use a QR code or access code to unlock a specific locker that the parcel will be placed in, whilst receivers will receive the same to unlock the locker on the other side.

In many respects, this is similar to parcel lockers that have been widely used by DHL, Amazon and other major logistics providers for at least a decade. However, there are still some notable differences worth noting with this scheme.

The first is that it is designed with customers in mind. Specifically, it offers the ability to print adhesive labels at the locker itself, rather than requiring users to print them in advance. This is an automated version of a service typically provided by post offices themselves.

The other aspect is that its close links to the Post Office mean that it has closer ties to the existing Royal Mail network than other locker services, intended as an extension of the former rather than a separate courier service in the way DHLs or Amazon’s are.

How Will This Change How Parcels Are Shipped?

Whilst parcel lockers have existed for a while, they have still remained a relatively niche service; most customers still prefer to have packages delivered at home, particularly if there is uncertainty that a parcel locker is within walking distance.

The theory, one that Royal Mail hopes to prove in practice over the first six months of 2026, is that if these lockers are more accessible, easier to use and make it far easier to access services such as returns and free postage, people are more likely to use them.

This will, in turn, save money on return deliveries if people are not in and allow postal workers to focus on delivering to parcel lockers and simplify the complex last-mile logistics.

Given that the majority of post delivered today consists of parcels rather than letters, making this transition is necessary to avoid delays and unexpected issues during shipping.

It will not be the best solution for everyone; people who cannot travel long distances, people who no longer have a nearby post office in their area and parcels that are particularly large or heavy will be inherently unsuitable for a parcel locker.

However, the hope is that by making many common deliveries easier, they can become more affordable for businesses and individual customers alike.

Will This Change The Type Of Cardboard Boxes Needed For Shipping?

Much like the new parcel postbox, establishing a common form of postage will create a new set of standard dimensions that cardboard boxes need to fit.

Along with the dimensions of shelves and storage pallets, product packaging needs to be mindful of the amount of space they take up in order to ensure that they fit in as many types of storage lockers as possible without being overly snug or risking damage caused by cramming them in.

This could mean changing some more cube-shaped products into flatter cuboids, increasing the amount of protective material around the box and designing the art around the parcel to appear on each side, as this will be the first impression that customers will get from now on, rather than the top of the parcel.