Unthinkable that Waverley market post office will close
It was widely reported this week that seven Scottish post offices were earmarked for closure as part of the Post Office’s plans to offload over 100 directly-owned branches.
Closure would be a last resort as it was hoped they would be taken over by existing retail partners or postmasters, but given the premise that these were all loss making it is hard to see why somebody would consider risking taking on the challenge of returning a post office to profit even if they had previous experience.
What was very surprising is that Edinburgh’s head post office, which of course is next to Avalanche, is on the list for possible closure. It is incredibly busy and is filled every day with locals, students, visitors and those wanting to either collect a passport or apply for one.
For local businesses it is an important drop off point for their online sales which for many is an essential part of what keeps them afloat. As if it wasn’t busy enough it became even busier when the post office in Frederick Street moved to Thistle Street despite the original claims that there would be little disruption as it was only a three minute walk away.
While the Frederick Street post office was not that visible the fact it was just off Princes Street meant that it did get a steady stream of tourists who now I suppose quite understandably seek out the Waverley Market rather than a side street in the New Town.
Even though there are two other currency exchanges in Waverley Market the post office is very popular for this service also so much so that it regularly needs its own queue.
The fact that the Waverley Market post office is under threat is something that has been on the cards for quite a while now and has been talked about from time to time especially when the St James Centre reopened and some thought it would move back there. I know from my own experience the centre is not a cheap place to be based but even given the number of staff it needs I find it very hard to believe it loses money.
Scottish post offices under threat include ones in Kirkwall on Orkney and Stornoway on Lewis which seems a lot more understandable. Other places with a post office in trouble are Glasgow, Haddington and Inverness.
One thing is for sure and that is that it is unthinkable that the centre’s post office would close. I can’t imagine where all the people who use it would go, and while when Frederick Street was closed for a few weeks when they moved to Thistle Street the centre’s post office managed with the extra business there is no way the same would be true if the roles were reversed.
Only time will tell but if somehow the Post Office is managing to lose money at the moment I’m sure an experienced operator would turn that around. Given the mess the Post Office has made of things in recent times who knows what the outcome may be but from a personal viewpoint I can only hope that things are resolved and I continue to have a post office next door.