Opening a second branch is one of the most exciting steps for a courier company — and one of the riskiest. Parcels now travel between locations, cash is collected in more places, and managers who used to see everything now see only their own floor. Problems that were small inside one depot become expensive across a network.
This guide covers how growing courier companies structure their branch network and keep parcels, money and performance under control.
Design the network before it designs itself
With a few branches, it’s tempting to run trucks directly between every pair. That stops scaling quickly: the number of lanes grows much faster than the number of branches.
Most networks end up as a mix: direct trucks on the two or three busiest lanes, and everything else through a hub. We looked at when to add hubs in an earlier article; here we focus on running the network day to day.
Give every branch a clear territory
- Assign delivery zones to branches. Every postcode or area belongs to exactly one branch. When a booking is made, the system knows the origin branch (who collects) and the destination branch (who delivers).
- Print the destination branch code on the label. Sorters should be able to route a parcel without reading the address.
- Decide who owns the customer. Usually the branch where the account was opened — that matters later for revenue and credit control.
Follow one parcel through the network
Scan points and what each one proves
| Scan point | Who scans | What it proves | Exception it catches |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collection | Driver | We have the parcel | Booked but never handed over |
| Inbound at origin | Branch staff | Parcel is in our building; real weight and size | Under-declared weight, damaged on arrival |
| Into bag | Sorter | Parcel is going to the right branch | Missorts |
| Bag onto linehaul | Loader | Bag left on a specific vehicle | Bags left behind |
| Bag received | Destination staff | Bag arrived, seal intact | Missing bags, tampering |
| Parcel out of bag | Destination staff | Each parcel arrived | Missing parcels inside a bag |
| Out for delivery | Driver | Driver took responsibility | Parcels sitting on shelves |
Fast bulk scanning with phone cameras or hand scanners keeps this practical; if scanning slows staff down, they’ll skip it when it’s busy, which is exactly when you need it most.
Run linehauls on a timetable
Ad-hoc trucks “when there’s enough” make delivery promises impossible. Publish a schedule and cut-off times, and plan your sorting around them.
| Lane | Departs | Arrives | Origin cut-off | Delivery promise |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Branch A → Hub | 19:00 | 21:30 | 17:30 | — |
| Branch B → Hub | 19:30 | 21:00 | 18:00 | — |
| Hub → Branch C | 02:00 | 05:30 | 23:30 at hub | Next day |
| Hub → Branch D | 01:00 | 06:00 | 23:30 at hub | Next day |
| Hub → Branch E (remote) | 02:00 | 09:30 | 23:30 at hub | Next day, afternoon |
Reconcile every manifest
A linehaul manifest lists every bag (and every parcel in it) on a vehicle. The receiving branch checks what arrived against it — immediately, not at the end of the week.
Split revenue and cost between branches fairly
A parcel booked and paid at Branch A but delivered by Branch C earns money for one and costs money for both. Without an agreed split, branch P&Ls are meaningless and managers argue about who should take which jobs.
| Branch P&L (monthly) | Branch A | Branch C |
|---|---|---|
| Origin revenue | $46,800 | $21,600 |
| Destination revenue | $28,200 | $41,400 |
| Driver and vehicle costs | − $38,500 | − $40,200 |
| Branch staff and rent | − $17,000 | − $13,500 |
| Branch contribution | $19,500 | $9,300 |
Settle cash and COD between branches
Cash on delivery is collected by the destination branch’s drivers but owed to merchants who are usually customers of the origin branch. Treat COD as a liability that moves through the network, not as branch income.
- Each branch reconciles its drivers’ cash daily and deposits it the same or next day.
- COD is paid out to merchants centrally, from a single statement per merchant across all branches.
- Inter-branch balances are netted weekly, so branches don’t transfer cash back and forth for every parcel.
Give people the access they need — and no more
| Role | Sees | Can do |
|---|---|---|
| Head office | All branches, all reports | Rates, users, settings, payouts |
| Branch manager | Own branch, inbound to own branch | Dispatch, staff, branch reports |
| Hub staff | Parcels and bags at the hub | Scan, bag, manifest |
| Driver | Own jobs today | Pickup, deliver, record cash |
| Cashier | Driver cash and COD | Hand-overs, deposits |
Proper users and permissions also make it easy to see who did what — every scan, change and payment tied to a named user.
Standardise, then let branches compete
- One set of statuses. “Out for delivery” must mean the same thing in every branch.
- One rate structure. Branches may have local promotions, but zones, services and surcharges come from head office.
- Written procedures for receiving, bagging, failed deliveries, damaged parcels and cash hand-over.
- A shared scorecard, so branches can compare themselves fairly.
| Branch KPI | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Parcels scanned in on time vs cut-off | Late scans miss linehauls and break promises |
| Manifest discrepancies per 1,000 parcels | Measures sorting and loading discipline |
| First-attempt delivery rate | Drives cost per delivery and customer satisfaction |
| Parcels older than 48 h in branch | Finds stuck and forgotten parcels |
| Driver cash variance | Measures cash discipline |
| Branch contribution margin | Shows which branches create value |
Common multi-branch mistakes
- Each branch keeping its own spreadsheet, so head office never sees one true number.
- No scan at bag level, so a missing bag is only discovered when customers complain.
- Delivery jobs created before parcels arrive at the delivering branch.
- No revenue split, so every branch manager believes they subsidise the others.
- COD held at branches for days instead of being reconciled and deposited daily.
Courier companies that grow through branches successfully usually make the same decision early: one system across the whole network, with hubs and linehauls built into the parcel’s record rather than tracked on the side.