FedEx Customers Will Be Able To Drop Off, Pick Up Packages At Walgreens Stores

Image courtesy of Mike Mozart

We’ve all seen what can happen when a package is left out in the open or otherwise unattended, but not everyone can be home during the day, live in a doorman building, or have their stuff delivered to an office. Also? Some carriers just hate coming to your house. In an effort to solve these problems, FedEx and Walgreens announced plans to put delivery lockers in as thousands of Walgreens stores by the end of next year.

Starting with an initial, smaller rollout this spring and later expanding around the country within the next several months, as many as 8,000 Walgreens stores will give customers access to FedEx’s drop off and pickup services, the two companies said.

The “long-term” deal is the result of FedEx research that showed customers rank pharmacies as a “preferred location for accessing their e-commerce shipments,” Raj Subramaniam, chief marketing and communications officer of FedEx, said in a statement.

The thought being, if you’re already there dropping off or picking up a prescription, you might like to cross a few other errands off your list as well.

“We look forward to providing our customers with these convenient options that will be available whenever the store is open,” said Reuben Slone, Walgreens senior vice president of supply chain, in the joint statement.

It’s unclear whether FedEx employees or Walgreens workers will staff the package service areas. On that note, a similar partnership between USPS and Staples — with mini post offices staffed by Staples workers in Staples stores — did not sit well with the union representing the postal employees. The two ended their agreement after the National Labor Relations Board ruled that the USPS had violated federal labor law in beginning the mini-post office program.

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.