PACK & SEND Franchise: Own a Specialist Packing & Shipping Service Centre

The PACK & SEND Franchise gives entrepreneurs the chance to step into an established corner of the logistics market that very few competitors are equipped to serve. Rather than chasing low-margin parcel volume, PACK & SEND service centres specialise in fragile, large, awkward and valuable goods (often referred to as FLAV items), where customers actively seek expertise and are willing to pay for it. The result is a business model built on high average transaction values, repeat custom and strong gross margins.

Founded in Australia in 1993, the brand has grown into one of the most recognised names in specialist freight, with close to 120 service centres trading across Australia and New Zealand before launching in Britain in 2009. Today, PACK & SEND partners ship antiques, artwork, musical instruments, IT equipment, medical devices and household goods anywhere in the world, working with both private customers and global brands.

A PACK & SEND franchise owner at their service centre

Brand Heritage and the Fortidia Network

PACK & SEND was founded by Michael Paul in Sydney in 1993 and grew into Australia's leading retail freight-reseller before crossing the world. The UK master franchise was established in 2009, with the head office in Reading recruiting the first wave of British partners. In 2021 PACK & SEND was acquired by what was then MBE Worldwide, the global parent of Mail Boxes Etc. The group rebranded as Fortidia in 2024 to reflect its evolution into a multi-brand global commerce platform spanning shipping, fulfilment, print and e-commerce services.

For UK franchise partners, the practical benefit of sitting inside Fortidia is buying power. Carrier rates, packaging supply contracts and IT investment are all leveraged across the group, which is hard for an independent operator to replicate from a single high street unit.

Why Choose the PACK & SEND Franchise?

The UK courier, express and parcel sector is one of the most actively monitored markets in the country. According to Ofcom's annual postal market monitoring reports, parcel volumes have more than doubled over the last decade as e-commerce reshapes household shipping habits. PACK & SEND occupies a niche within that growth where competition is thin and customer loyalty is high. Franchise partners benefit from a brand that has spent more than three decades refining its systems, supplier relationships and operational playbook.

• ✓ Exclusive territory with protection from other partners opening nearby
• ✓ Established relationships with domestic and international carriers
• ✓ Proprietary online portal for quoting, tracking and managing shipments
• ✓ Comprehensive launch package, head office marketing support and 24/7 intranet access
• ✓ Recurring B2B accounts alongside walk-in retail customers
• ✓ No previous logistics experience required, full training provided

The PACK & SEND Business Model

Service centres are deliberately located in secondary high street positions to keep rent low while maintaining strong visibility. Each owner-operator starts hands-on, then builds a small team to handle quoting, packing and customer service as the business grows. Trading hours are conventional business hours rather than late-night retail, which is one of the reasons the brand attracts career-changers looking to leave shift work behind.

Performance Indicators

The UK Service Centre Footprint

The UK network covers a deliberate spread of city and large-town locations rather than chasing a unit on every high street. Published franchisee profiles include service centres in Oxford, Guildford, Salford Quays, Edinburgh East, Belfast East and Elephant & Castle in central London, with additional centres trading from Reading, Glasgow, Manchester and elsewhere. The brand has been explicit that it is recruiting partners in all corners of the country to build a national footprint comparable to the Australian operation.

Investment Breakdown

When considering the PACK & SEND Franchise, it is important to separate the initial franchise fee from the wider funding requirement. The figures below reflect the brand's currently published guidance and should be confirmed in the formal discovery process.

Training, Onboarding and Launch Package

Every new partner completes a structured induction covering systems, sales, packaging, freight operations and customer service. The programme is delivered partly at head office and partly inside an existing service centre so that new owners see live trading before opening their own unit. Once trading begins, PACK & SEND provides on-site launch support, a matched marketing contribution in the opening weeks (the brand publishes a £3,000 franchisee spend matched by up to £1,800 from head office for Google Ads, social, PR and local SEO) and a guaranteed minimum number of sales leads during year one. The franchisor is a member of the Quality Franchise Association, which sets ethical standards for franchise recruitment and operation.

• ✓ Structured induction covering operations, sales and marketing
• ✓ On-site launch support when your centre opens
• ✓ Matched local marketing contribution in the opening weeks
• ✓ Guaranteed minimum sales leads in year one
• ✓ Regular performance reviews with the support team
• ✓ Access to franchise partner events and network knowledge sharing
• ✓ Access to the PACKNET operational platform

Territory and Coverage

Each franchise territory is the geographic area served by a single service centre, and PACK & SEND commits not to open another centre inside it. Other partners cannot solicit customers in your patch, although the customer is free to choose any centre they have an existing relationship with. Because PACK & SEND ships globally, your territory is the marketing exclusivity zone rather than a hard limit on revenue. National and international accounts won by head office are routed through the network using documented allocation rules.

A Day in the Service Centre

A typical service-centre day blends retail walk-ins with B2B account work. Mornings usually start with national carrier collections and the previous day's outbound consignments leaving the unit. Through the day the team quotes new jobs, packs fragile and oversized items in custom timber crates or foam bracing, processes payments and chases proof-of-delivery for ongoing shipments. Account managers from local galleries, antique dealers, IT resellers and medical-device companies become familiar faces. Most centres operate to standard business hours rather than late-night retail, which gives owners a clear separation between work and home life.

Who Suits the PACK & SEND Franchise

The brand looks for partners with strong people skills, problem-solving ability and a genuine appetite for customer service. Existing UK franchisees have come from corporate management, retail leadership, the armed forces and other franchise systems, which underlines how transferable the model can be. The role is mostly people-facing rather than van-driving, so it tends to attract owners who want a structured B2B-leaning business with a physical base, repeat customers and the chance to build a small team. No prior logistics experience is required, and the eight-week induction is built on the assumption that you are coming from outside the sector.

Interested in exploring more opportunities in this sector? Take a look at other Courier & Delivery franchise opportunities available on Franchise Hunt.