Royal Mail copies the model of Poste Italiane: the most important British postal company decided not to deliver letters on Saturdays anymore, adopting a decision that Poste has implemented for almost ten years. Royal Mail's choice, certainly accelerated by the pandemic, will be operational in the UK from next year. The reference to the Poste Italiane model is explicit: the executive chairman of Royal Mail, Keith Williams, cited the Italian company as a virtuous model to adopt and as an example of a large European country that had optimized costs and resources.
“The merit of Poste Italiane – explained a note from the group led by Matteo Del Fante – was to have intercepted the changes in advance and that for years it has implemented a digital transformation that makes the business sustainable even in times of sharp mail drop (at the end of August Royal Mail had a significant drop with over a billion fewer letters than the previous year) or of emergencies such as the health one that the world is experiencing".
For Royal Mail, founded in 1516, listed on the London Stock Exchange and recognized as one of the most important postal companies in the world, this is an epochal turning point. For once, Italy, with its Post Office, is the pioneer and Great Britain, usually ahead, follows.
