Evri, UK’s ‘worst courier’, fails to deliver on profits

The delivery company dubbed Britain’s ‘worst’ company made losses last year after being hit by inflation and staff shortages.

Evri, previously called Hermes, reported a loss of £77m for the year to February 25, 2023, while sales were flat at £1.46bn. The year before it made a profit of £48 million.

The company blamed “challenging trading conditions” and rising fuel costs for its vehicles. While labor shortages have eased since last year, Evri says it still faces “local resource shortages.”

Evri is controlled by private equity giant Advent International, which bought a 75 percent stake in 2020 and owns other UK assets such as defense group Cobham. The remaining quarter of the company is owned by its former parent company, German e-commerce giant Otto Group.

‘Worst’ in Britain: Evri has developed a bad reputation among customers

Evri has built up a bad reputation among customers.

In a survey published in January by consumer website MoneySavingExpert, it was ranked as the worst parcel delivery company in Britain last year, beating rival Yodel, owned by the Barclay family.

The damning verdict came despite the company rebranding to shake off its reputation for late deliveries and lost and damaged parcels.

The swing to a loss also appeared to have weighed on the pay packages of the company’s executives.

Evri reported that total remuneration for its directors was £1.46 million, compared to £1.76 million paid out last year.