By Doha News Team
A mobile app that tracks parcels, single-counter services and the nation’s first logistics hub are among several new features Qatar Post is rolling out this week.
The shipping hub will be built on the site of the old Doha International Airport.
It should offer a quicker and cheaper way of getting mail around the world, officials said.
The news was announced at an event yesterday to unveil Q-Post’s new logo. The nation’s mail delivery service pledged to “upgrade the postal network” in Qatar and offer new products and services to customers.
Renovated branches
As part of its overhaul, Q-Post said all 25 of its branches across the country will be renovated and fitted with new digital terminals.
There, customers can do everything at one counter, instead of having to visit separate counters for each service.
The main post office at the Corniche is now accepting customers after months of refurbishment, while the Al Rayyan branch will re-open to customers in November, Q-Post said.
Fit-out of remaining branches should be done by the end of next year.
Meanwhile, some 13 new kiosks are slated at Al Meera supermarkets across the country.
These should launch by the end of this year, Maud Daniel, Qatar Post’s head of marketing and communications told Doha News.
Mobile app
Qatar Post has also launched a new mobile app.
It currently enables customers to track packages; find branch locations, collection points and smart lockers; and make online payments via Qatar-issued credit cards.
By next March, customers will also be able to use it to re-direct parcels to other addresses or arrange pick-ups and deliveries.
Additionally, they should be able to have their mail held at post office branches if they are out of the country, a Q-Post official said.
The Qatar Post app is currently available to download for free for both Android and iPhone users.
Faster mail delivery
The postal services company has also set up a new logistics hub, on the site of the old Doha International Airport, to speed up mail service using Qatar as a base.
It is hoped to be operational by the end of this year.
When it is, Q-Post will work with Qatar Airways to transport mail, Ian Bett, head of finance transformation at Qatar Post told Doha News.
“Currently, mail to the UK, for example, all has to go through Heathrow. Under the new system, delivery would be faster by using Qatar Airways’ direct routes to cities like Manchester, Edinburgh, Birmingham or Cardiff,” Bett said.
This should improve services not only from Qatar but also other parts of the world, with Doha acting as the hub for the mail delivery, he added.
Q-Post is also planning the launch of a new e-commerce platform in 2018 and upgraded sorting facilities in 2019.
Last April, Qatar Post announced its first stage of supporting online retail with the launch of its shop and ship service Connected.
This enables residents to shop and get their items delivered to their PO Box, direct to their home or to a smart locker.
At the time, the organization also said drone delivery would be an option, although there has been no further details on this since.
Re-branded
All of the changes were unveiled yesterday alongside Qatar Post’s new logo in a lavish ceremony at the Sheraton Grand hotel.
The new design replaces the old curly letter Q with the word Qatar written in Arabic calligraphy, in blue and maroon.
The brand colors represent the sea (blue), the desert sand (yellow), with maroon reflecting the national flag, Q-Post said.
#QatarPost new brand identity is out ! pic.twitter.com/MK87sHzRxC
— QATAR POST📦 الشركة القطرية للخدمات البريدية (@QATAR_POST) September 17, 2017
The organization also released a film Dear Qatar, from Qatar Post outlining its mission for the country in the coming years.
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