Wingcopter-backed drone delivery project to German villages expands. Amazon beware (or at least applaud)

It may not be ready to rival Amazon as a teaming marketplace where virtually any legal product can be bought and transported rapidly, but Germany’s LieferMichel drone delivery project spiriting goods to remote communities is starting to attract an impressive array of participating retailers.

As DroneDJ reported earlier this month, the LieferMichel initiative – which  launched last autumn making drone deliveries of food and basic necessities to relatively isolated rural communities expanded its roster of retail partners two weeks ago. In doing so it added the Bären-Apotheke parapharmacy, which provides a large selection of non-prescription healthcare and medical supplies. Now the program is welcoming another kind of shop that residents in remote areas often need: home repair and construction outlet Profi Mertens.

Arrival of the family-owned DIY chain adds another section of goods people who’d otherwise have to drive for hours to get supplies in big box stores and malls, but can instead now order online through LieferMichel. Up to four kilos of items are then collected and loaded on to drones, which fly them landing spots in numerous participating villages for hand-over to electric bike messengers for last mile delivery. 

Though initially begun as a limited but ambitious trial project, LieferMichel has attracted participating retailers whose diverse locations allow drone delivery coverage of a widening expanse of Germany regions. The increasingly diverse products partners sell, meanwhile, is also starting to give the initiative a budding, public service-minded Amazon vibe (minus the Bezosian billions at the top of it).

“We are delighted to be part of this innovative project and to be able to offer our customers in Würzberg and Rehbach an additional service,” said Profi Mertins managing director Stephan Mertins. “When my grandfather opened our first store 90 years ago, he very quickly purchased a small van to be able to deliver to customers further away. Today, we make shopping easier for customers by flying orders for smaller goods to them by drone – a great development.”

Just how varied are LieferMichel outliets becoming? Among participants are Bundesliga pro soccer club SV Darmstadt 98, which allows fans wanting team gear to wear while doing their Profi Mertins-supplied DIY repairs a limited selection of jerseys to buy. 

While that offer to sports shoppers remains decidedly limited for the moment, Ansgar Kadura – chief services officer of the Wingcopter drone delivery operator in LieferMichel – says the increasing diversity and number of retailers joining the project is a clear indication of companies, the public, and government all supporting an activity proving its value as a business and community service.

“It’s great that more and more retailers from a wide range of product categories are taking part in this pilot project,” says Kadura. “This underlines the fact that companies, especially in rural regions, are open to new approaches and are thinking about how they can make life easier for their customers.”

LieferMichel is backed by Wingcopter, the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences, and participating retailing businesses, and is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport. Drone deliveries are made using the Wingcopter 198, which takes off and lands vertically, but flies horizontally, obtaining similar long flight capacities and resistance to hostile weather to fixed-wing UAVs.