New Store Design Flexes to Meet Customer and Franchisee Needs

As a network of independently owned and operated locations, The UPS Store® remains committed to fostering success for our incredible franchise owners. Honoring this promise, we have revealed a new design for our retail stores, marking an exciting new chapter in how we serve both our customers and grow our franchise system. Our reimagined store design, with its open layout, showcases all the services our stores and associates provide–from packing and shipping offerings to more specialized services such as printing and notarizing. 

Individual franchisees have the option to customize their model to fit their customer’s needs, including adding smart lockers into the mailbox area where customers can retrieve their packages and mail 24 hours a day. There are also several other modular pieces that enable franchise owners to customize and optimize the way they serve their customers. 

The process of designing the new store involved years of engaging with key groups, including hearing directly from franchisees, to determine how we can best serve them. We tested the new store design in multiple contexts, including nontraditional and smaller stores, with footprints as small as 535 square feet. It is crucial for the design to be adaptable, as rising interest in our innovative nontraditional locations at grocery stores, pharmacies, hotels, and more offer new opportunities for our franchisees and touchpoints for our customers.

All of these concepts and features help give our franchise owners a competitive advantage over others in the business services industry, helping to drive foot traffic into our stores. The redesign appeals to today’s customer, as e-commerce continues to transform the business landscape. With smart lockers and enhanced space utilization, more packages driven by online shopping can flow in and out of the store with ease. 

Our refreshed store concept underscores our dedication to keep innovating for both customers and franchise owners. Even in uncertain and evolving times, innovation fuels passion for our stores and services, ultimately delivering growth and profitability.

Interested in bringing our new store design to an area near you? Learn more about becoming a franchisee with The UPS Store here.