Citipost
Citipost is the UK's largest privately owned distribution company providing mailing, fulfilment, print management, and 3PL software services to SMBs and large enterprises across retail, e-commerce, and publishing sectors globally.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1985
- HeadquartersErith, United Kingdom
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Citipost does
Citipost is the UK's largest privately owned distribution company, headquartered in Erith, Kent, with a 35+ year operating history dating to 1985 (originally founded as Datarun during a Central London mail strike). The group operates across mailing, fulfilment, and delivery services for UK and international customers, with £150m+ annual turnover, 250+ employees, 150,000+ square feet of operational space, and offices in Europe, North America, Canada, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
The company's core offerings span three integrated pillars: Print Management (two HP digital web presses processing 250,000+ A4 sheets per hour with end-to-end print-to-mail capabilities), Distribution and Fulfilment (own hand delivery network covering every UK high street address 364 days per year, plus international mail and parcel services through Citipost Global), and Order Management, Stock Control, and 3PL Software (proprietary warehouse management system integrated with e-commerce platforms Shopify and Linnworks and carriers including DPD, Royal Mail, Yodel, UK Mail, and DX). Supporting subsidiaries include Citipost Mail (Downstream Access postal services), Citisecure (online portal for office supplies, hygiene, parcel collection, confidential waste), Citicare (cleaning and PPE manufacturing), Citilogistics, Insight 2 Innovate, and Home Move Box.
Citipost operates a sales-led go-to-market with dedicated account management for each customer, targeting businesses from SMBs through large enterprises across retail, e-commerce, publishing, and catalogue segments. Revenue is generated primarily through transaction-fee service pricing across distribution and print management, supplemented by subscription-based 3PL software revenue. Multi-year contracts with bespoke quote-based pricing, no publicly disclosed price tiers, and over 35 years of customer retention (including accounts onboarded in the company's founding era) characterize the commercial model. ISO 9001, 14001, and 27001 certifications underpin enterprise procurement suitability.
Citipost firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Citipost
- Legal name
- Citipost Limited
- Website
- https://citipost.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1985
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Citipost is the UK's largest privately owned distribution company providing mailing, fulfilment, print management, and 3PL software services to SMBs and large enterprises across retail, e-commerce, and publishing sectors globally.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Citipost industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Postal and Distribution Services
- NAICS
- Postal Service (4911), Direct Mail Advertising (541860)
- SIC
- Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330), Services-Direct Mail Advertising Services (7331)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Domestic Parcel Post / Ground Parcels (TLAAAAAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Direct Mail / Marketing Mail & Bulk Mail Services (TLAAAAAJ), International Letter Post (Inbound/Outbound) (TLAAAAAK)
Keywords
Where Citipost is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Erith
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices8 records
Markets served
Citipost business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Distribution & Fulfilment Services: Core distribution services including domestic parcel delivery, international mail and parcel distribution, catalogue and directory distribution, hand delivery network
- Print Management: Printing, enveloping, fulfilling, and mailing services. Full end-to-end print management including HP digital web presses
- Business & Office Supplies: Citisecure portal offering hygiene products, business and office supplies, parcel collection services, and confidential waste collection and destruction
- Order Management & 3PL Software: Software enabling customers to select competitive delivery carriers, upload and produce labels, connecting with e-commerce platforms
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Custom enterprise and SMB pricing based on service requirements |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels2 records
Citipost product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Citipost is a privately held UK distribution and mailing company that provides domestic and international parcel and fulfilment services, high-volume print management, and proprietary 3PL/order management software for business customers. It operates its own hand-delivery network covering all UK high street addresses and supports an online B2B portal (Citisecure) for office supplies, hygiene products, parcel collection, and confidential waste services.
Product overview
Citipost is a logistics, mailing, and fulfilment company operating as a platform of integrated services. The core offerings include Print Management (using HP digital web presses for high-volume printing, enveloping, and mailing), Distribution & Fulfilment (domestic and international parcel and mail services), and Order Management/3PL Software (warehouse management and carrier integration). These are supported by specialized sub-brands: Citipost Mail (Downstream Access postal services), Citipost Global (international services), Citisecure (online B2B ordering portal for office supplies, hygiene products, parcel collection, and confidential waste), Citicare (cleaning and hygiene products), Citilogistics, Home Move Box, and Insight 2 Innovate. The Hand Delivery network provides last-mile coverage across Great Britain. The company leverages its own software to integrate with e-commerce platforms (Linnworks, Shopify) and multiple delivery carriers (DPD, Royal Mail, Yodel, UK Mail, DX) to offer end-to-end solutions.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Citicare: Cleaning, hygiene, and personal protective equipment manufacturing subsidiary
- Citilogistics
- Citipost Mail
- Citipost Global
- Home Move Box
- Insight 2 Innovate
- Citisecure
Products and services
- Print Management Comprehensive digital print management services including high-volume web printing, enveloping, collating, packing, and mailing solutions for businesses requiring large-scale print runs.
- Distribution and Fulfilment Domestic and international mail and parcel distribution services, including catalogue and directory distribution, e-commerce fulfilment, same-day pallet delivery, and economy 2kg untracked deliveries worldwide.
- Order Management, Stock Control, and 3PL Software Warehouse management and 3PL software with advanced stock control, picking, and despatch capabilities that integrates with e-commerce platforms (Linnworks, Shopify) and major UK courier networks.
- Citisecure Business and Office Solutions Branded online ordering portal providing businesses with hygiene and cleaning products, business and office supplies, parcel collection services, and confidential waste collection and destruction.
- London Hand Delivery Proprietary hand delivery network covering every high street address across Great Britain, operating 364 days per year with over 80% of orders delivered by Citipost employed drivers.
- International Mail and Parcel Services International mail and parcel distribution covering standard and priority mail, publication services, courier converted mail, international courier, air and sea freight, import/export, and e-commerce delivery.
- Citipost Mail (Downstream Access) Downstream Access (DSA) postal services within the Citipost Group, providing full UK postal market coverage as an alternative postal operator.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 45% cheaper than Royal Mail for hand delivery
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Citipost
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Citipost technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration7 records
Feature4 records
Citipost partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- DPDcoreIntegration partner for parcel delivery services. Citipost's stock control system integrates with DPD for coordinated delivery operations.
- Royal MailcoreIntegration partner for UK mail delivery. Citipost leverages Royal Mail network as part of comprehensive delivery options.
- LinnworkscoreE-commerce platform integration partner. Citipost can connect with Linnworks for order management and stock control synchronization.
- ShopifycoreE-commerce platform integration partner enabling seamless order processing and fulfillment for Shopify merchants.
- CiticarecoreSister company under the Citipost group specializing in cleaning, hygiene, and personal protective equipment manufacturing. Supplies products to Citisecure portal.
- CitilogisticscoreGroup subsidiary providing logistics services, extending Citipost's operational capabilities across Canada and North America.
- Citipost MailcoreGroup subsidiary providing downstream access (DSA) mail services, enabling full UK postal market deregulation coverage.
- Citipost GlobalcoreGroup subsidiary for international mail and parcel distribution services, providing global reach beyond UK operations.
- Insight 2 InnovateminorGroup subsidiary (formerly Citibet) focused on streamlining print, fulfilment and delivery for high street retailers.
- Home Move BoxminorGroup subsidiary providing home moving box solutions, expanding group service offerings.
Scale indicators23 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Citipost competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- DX Group: UK-based mail, parcel and logistics operator focused on B2B documents and secure delivery. Overlaps with Citipost in UK domestic parcel and document distribution and is integrated as a partner carrier in Citipost's 3PL software.
- Yodel: UK parcel carrier focused on residential and SMB deliveries. Listed as an integration partner in Citipost's stock control system, reflecting direct overlap in parcel fulfilment for retailer and e-commerce clients.
- Whistl: UK-based postal alternative operator (formerly TNT Post UK) that competes directly with Citipost in bulk mail injection, door-drop distribution, and Downstream Access services. Both target the same enterprise customers seeking Royal Mail alternatives at scale.
- DPD Local UK: UK arm of DPDgroup, focused on B2B and same-day collection/delivery services. Overlaps directly with Citipost's parcel and same-day pallet services and is integrated into Citipost's stock management platform.
- Evri (formerly Hermes UK): One of the largest UK parcel carriers serving e-commerce and SMB customers with home delivery. Comparable to Citipost's e-commerce and catalogue distribution offering and competes for the same last-mile SMB volume.
Broad incumbents
- FedEx UK: Global express courier with UK domestic and international parcel services. Comparable to Citipost Global/Citilogistics on international mail and parcel distribution, particularly for enterprise and cross-border e-commerce customers.
- Deutsche Post DHL (UK operations): Global postal and logistics group with UK Mail / DHL eCommerce operations. Competes with Citipost in domestic and cross-border parcel services, and DHL is integrated via Citipost's UK Mail carrier relationship.
- Royal Mail: UK's incumbent universal postal operator. Citipost positions against Royal Mail on price (45%+ cheaper hand delivery) and integrates Royal Mail as a downstream access partner. Direct comparator on letter, parcel, and bulk mail volumes.
- UPS UK: Global express and logistics provider with UK operations. Competes with Citipost on domestic B2B parcel and international shipping for enterprise customers, particularly where time-definite international delivery is required.
Emerging players
- Quadient: Provider of mail automation, customer communications management, and parcel locker solutions. Comparable to Citipost's print management and direct mail capabilities, with overlapping enterprise customers seeking to digitise and optimise customer communications.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Citipost social profiles
Digital presenceCitipost compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance6 records
Citipost financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Citipost leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Citipost subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries7 records
Citipost funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Citipost M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Citipost
What does Citipost do?
Citipost is a privately held UK distribution and mailing company that provides domestic and international parcel and fulfilment services, high-volume print management, and proprietary 3PL/order management software for business customers. It operates its own hand-delivery network covering all UK high street addresses and supports an online B2B portal (Citisecure) for office supplies, hygiene products, parcel collection, and confidential waste services.
Is Citipost a public or private company?
Citipost is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Citipost founded?
Citipost was founded in 1985. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Citipost based?
Citipost is headquartered in Erith, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Citipost make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Distribution & Fulfilment Services are the primary driver. The others are print Management, business & Office Supplies and order Management & 3PL Software.
Who are Citipost's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are DX Group, Yodel, Whistl, DPD Local UK and Evri (formerly Hermes UK). Broad incumbents are FedEx UK, Deutsche Post DHL (UK operations), Royal Mail and UPS UK. Quadient is listed as an emerging player.
Does Citipost have an API?
No public API is recorded for Citipost.
What industry is Citipost in?
Citipost's product category is Postal and Distribution Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is TLAAAAAB, Domestic Parcel Post / Ground Parcels, with a secondary code of TLAAAAAJ, Direct Mail / Marketing Mail & Bulk Mail Services. Its NAICS code is 4911 and its SIC code is 7330.