Why this matters to Canadians
Canada Post is committed to being there for all Canadians. The infrastructure that Canada Post has built over the past century connects every community across the country and provides businesses with access to customers no matter where they live.
The country needs a postal service that is there for everyone, especially those who need it most – small and midsize businesses and Canadians living in rural and remote communities. They will be impacted the most as private, contract-labour delivery companies, built to serve large, U.S.-based retailers, expand their Canadian presence.
Small businesses are struggling to compete against multinational retail giants
Small businesses are the backbone of Canada’s economy and at the heart of Canadian communities. Yet, small businesses across the country are struggling to compete in a market dominated by large, multinational retail giants, which offer competitive prices and sophisticated online platforms. These large, global retailers tend to benefit from factors such as economies of scale, the size of their distribution network, and data analytics. They’re squeezing out Canadian small businesses.
Now, more than ever, small businesses across Canada need a delivery partner that can help level the playing field. That company is Canada Post – we’re on their side.
Canada Post serves as a lifeline for businesses in rural and remote areas, connecting them to the rest of the country and the world.
A national equalizer for small businesses
In every corner of the country, small businesses rely on our services and our unrivalled national network. Canada Post’s infrastructure connects businesses to every community across Canada and to customers around the world. We open their sales to every doorstep, helping them go head-to-head with global retail giants.
While private sector delivery companies seek out large volumes from global retailers, Canada Post is there for small and midsize businesses. Canadian entrepreneurs need this choice when it comes to their ecommerce delivery provider. They need a trusted partner that supports their growth and ability to compete.
It’s one of the ways Canada Post serves as an essential national equalizer for small businesses. Our customers have told us so. When we surveyed our small business customers, they said our access and reach, including our ability to deliver to all Canadian addresses, are what set us apart from other delivery providers.
Bringing small businesses to every doorstep
- We support more than half a million small businesses across the country.
- A majority of our small business customers are micro-businesses with less than $1 million in revenue and fewer than 10 employees.
- More than 20 per cent of our small business customers are in rural Canada.
A lifeline for Canadians in rural and remote areas
Most Canadians live in urban areas, well served by a host of parcel delivery companies. Canadians and businesses in rural and remote areas do not have that luxury. Canada Post is a lifeline for them, providing access to commerce and customers in every corner of the country and across the globe.
Rural, remote and northern communities, with their lower population densities and distance from large urban centres, tend to be viewed as costly from a delivery perspective. But Canada Post has always been there to serve them. We go to their communities on a daily basis. For Canada Post, remote delivery includes communities that are only accessible by air for a large portion of the year. Each week, we have more than 280 flights to northern and remote communities through contracted air service providers.
We have more than 280 flights per week to northern and remote communities through contracted air service providers.
In many parts of the country, we deliver a significantly higher proportion of parcels to rural and remote areas. Nationally, our parcel delivery market share in small and rural communities is 40 per cent higher than in urban areas. Many other large delivery companies also rely on Canada Post to make their last-mile deliveries in these smaller communities.
The significant challenges threatening Canada Post are also a threat to rural and remote communities. Canadians and small businesses in rural and remote areas cannot be left behind. Their postal service is an important publicly owned national infrastructure. It must have the flexibility to change if it is to continue to deliver goods and essential items to and from these communities. If the very future of the postal system is at risk, so too are the small businesses and local economies in these communities.
Conclusion
Preserving a vital national infrastructure
The challenges facing the postal service have increased over time and were accelerated by the post-pandemic competitive climate. Today, these challenges have put the system at a crossroads. Canada Post needs to change quickly, or this important national, publicly owned infrastructure will fall further behind. It will struggle to support and serve the country, particularly those who need it most.
Canada Post has been undergoing a major transformation to increase its competitiveness and better serve Canadians, but its current situation will require a much broader approach. The Corporation and its leadership are committed to leading this change, with a determined focus on ensuring this essential service is there for Canadians, today and in the future.
Planning on our future roadmap is already under way, with important discussions occurring with the Minister, the Government of Canada, stakeholders, our bargaining agents, and the Canadians we proudly serve.
Our goal is to ensure the national postal system is well positioned to serve a rapidly evolving country, and that we are securely on the path to financial self-sustainability. To do so, we must have the flexibility needed to compete in today’s ecommerce landscape, while investing in and protecting the service we provide to the entire country. We will do so while ensuring that the appropriate checks and balances, which are important to Canadians, are in place.