Sainsbury's has announced a long-term partnership with Royal Mail to install parcel lockers in its shops across the UK.

The supermarket chain is the first in the country to partner with Royal Mail for its expanding network of parcel drop-off and collection points.

Royal Mail's smart lockers offer a label printing service, with users able to print the label by scanning a QR code at the locker or requesting a QR code when returning a purchase.

The UK postal service, which currently has more than 1,500 lockers and 7,000 collection points throughout the UK, rolled out its network of parcel lockers in December to meet the growing demand for delivery and collection points and address the rising number of second-hand sellers in the market.

The first Sainsbury’s-based lockers have already been launched in Clapham, Desborough, Kempshott, Low Hall, Kidderminster and Chislehurst, with the retailer confirming plans to expand the service in the coming months.

Royal Mail and Sainsbury’s, which currently operates nearly 600 supermarkets and over 800 convenience stores across the UK, said they also plan to introduce collection points in the near future.

Jack Clarkson, group director for strategy and transformation at Royal Mail, said that partnering with a retailer with the size and popularity of Sainsbury's will provide major benefits for customers and the UK public by introducing more ways to deliver and collect parcels in convenient locations as demand for delivery and collection points increases.

“To meet our goal of making sending and receiving parcels as easy as possible, we must considerably expand our network, this is the start of an exciting partnership with Sainsbury’s that will help us to meet that goal at pace,” he said.

Patrick Dunne, chief property and procurement officer at Sainsbury’s, said that the lockers will be available seven days a week, giving customers an “easy, convenient way to drop off and collect parcels via Royal Mail as they shop.”

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