France-based crowdshipping platform Shopopop has announced plans to launch in the UK as part of its international growth strategy.
The company is targeting a partnership with at least one major UK retailer by the end of 2026, with discussions already underway with the likes of Asda, Co-op, Kingfisher, Morrisons and Tesco. The move into what it describes as Europe’s largest ecommerce market marks a key step in its wider growth plans.
What is crowdshipping?
Founded in 2015, Shopopop connects retailers with local individuals, or ‘crowdshippers’, who deliver groceries and goods within their communities. The business now employs more than 115 people and has built a network of over 350,000 crowdshippers, completing more than 17 million deliveries across Europe. It currently works with more than 25 retail partners across 7,500 stores, including Carrefour, E.Leclerc and Decathlon.
The UK rollout follows the business reaching profitability in France and comes as it looks to scale beyond its home market. However, rather than a broad UK rollout, Shopopop plans to focus first on rural areas, where a lack of delivery capacity and infrastructure continues to limit last-mile options.
Johan Ricaut, CEO and co-founder, said the UK had long been a target market: “We are incredibly excited about bringing our crowdshipping model to the UK which is a market we have long admired. The UK is known for embracing new online delivery methods and together with its strong sense of community, we see our platform as the ideal tool for rural and hard-to-reach communities.”
Targeting the UK’s rural areas
Antoine Truong, global head of retail, added that the company sees a clear gap in the market, particularly outside major cities: “We are confident Shopopop’s community-focused approach can address some of today’s most pressing issues for last-mile deliveries throughout the country. In particular, we are looking forward to offering new solutionsfor consumers in rural areas to help them access the groceries and goods they require on a daily basis, delivered by trusted members of their community.”
If it can secure a major retail partner, the UK will be an early test of whether its community-led delivery model can scale beyond its home market.
