Stamp of approval

After six and a half years of working at the business hub of Bangalow, Karen and Dave Elder have sold the Bangalow Post Office business. The new owner/operators are mother and daughter team, Joan Leeds and Kristy Nelder.

The nature of post offices has changed markedly over the past couple of decades. The biggest change Karen and Dave had seen in their time at the Post Office was the decline in ‘snail mail’ and the surge in delivery and despatch of parcels through Australia Post. The decrease in the number of letters posted has meant Australia Post’s letter division posted a loss of $190 million in the last half of 2022. It has been said that the decline in the business of sending letters was disrupted by technology in the same way cars made the horse and buggy redundant. On average, we receive a little over one letter each week. That would be much less if it weren’t for government regulations that require certain communications be sent by post.

However, people purchasing goods online and local businesses selling online has been a boon to Australia Post. This was boosted by COVID lockdowns and shutdowns, which further ramped up online purchasing.

Post offices are not businesses you can just agree to buy and start operating. Before a person can enter into an agreement to buy a Post Office, permission from Australia Post is required. A lengthy vetting process is involved, and then extensive training is mandatory.

For new owners, Joan and Kristy, this is their first Post Office business but have previously owned courier businesses which gives them an advantage in understanding the modern postal service. Joan has also had experience owning newsagencies and other businesses. Kristy’s background is in finance and software. Whilst they have worked together before, this is their first time as business partners.

Much work in a post office is done long before the doors open at 9am. The week starts at 2am Monday for Kristy and 5am other days, the receiving freight deliveries and sorting the parcels.

Joan says that she is looking forward to making changes to the business. “We plan a refit to speed up service and make it more convenient for customers. We want to ensure that the community knows all the available services available at the post office such as passport applications, ID verification, banking (depositing and withdrawals) and other financial services such as travel cards and foreign currency exchange. We also will have a social media presence soon.”

With other changes such as restoring a front entry and landscaping, the old post office will be taking on a fresh face.