Looming post shop closure averted

“Invercargill is my home town. I want to continue to look after people, even if it means I will lose money – as long as my business can sustain it.’’

Steve Jo

South Invercargill NZ Post branch owner

South Invercargill’s post shop has a

12- month reprieve.

NZ Post has accepted a proposal from the branch owner Steve Jo, to continue to offer full services but at slightly reduced hours – closing at 4pm rather than 5.30pm.

But it also issued an adamant statement that the renewal was only for another year.

“This full-service agency will close on April 3, 2025. Glengarry is closing as planned on April 20, 2024."

Jo said he still held hope that a service he saw as essential for the community would continue after that, whether it was ultimately operated by him or someone else.

In the meantime, he would still be losing money, he said.

“But I can live with that if it means maintaining the service.’’

His other business interests – a pharmacy and “a little bit of retail’’ – had been able to absorb losses to maintain the service in an area where many people were not internet users and, he was convinced, needed face-to-face contact.

“I do want to continue longer, definitely,’’ he said.

“Invercargill is my home town. I want to continue to look after people, even if it means I will lose money – as long as my business can sustain it.’’

Since Covid, the shop, which operates in the large, former United Video building, had been “haemorrhaging money’’.

By late last year it had become unsustainable and when NZ Post rejected his proposal to scale down from full to mid-tier service levels, he felt he had no option but to close.

Jo said he had felt confused by an approach that meant NZ Post was treating no service at all as preferable to a scaled-back service, and reaching a decision that was based on just looking at the numbers, from a disant perspective.

He also operated the Kiwibank service and the bank had seen the need to serve the community, he said.

His closure announcement had been met, as expected, with “massive complaint and frustration from the community’’.

The reduced hours and the fact one staff member had moved on, provided enough savings to continue.

The more people who used the post shop the stronger the case for its retention, he said.

And if ultimately he could not continue himself, “NZ Post should actively be looking for another person to operate a full service store here, because we need it’’.