..... the last 108 Directly Managed Branches which are operated by the Post Office will be franchised by the autumn.
This means that those communities that currently have a Directly Managed Branch in their area will continue to be able to access Post Office services either at, or near to, the same location.
More details have been revealed in the last few days.
It is proposed that 56 Directly Managed Branches will be operated by three operators from the same premises where they are currently located whilst the long-term arrangements for the branch are finalised.
RF Retail
With 21 years’ experience in retail and Post Office, Richard Fleetwood, is the third generation of postmasters. His grandfather and father both ran branches, and his mother has had several senior roles managing Post Offices across the UK. RF Retail’s journey began when it opened its first store in the North East of England in September 2020. They currently operate six Post Office branches. RF Retail is also the largest independent operator of Banking Hubs in the UK after operating the first two in 2021. They currently operate six Banking Hubs. Another Post Office and Banking Hub are also being planned for this summer.
RFE will operate branches at Bransholme, Bridlington, Caernarfon, Chester-Le-Street, Crossgates, Gloucester, Grimsby, Morley, Nailsea, Oswestry, Redditch, South Shields, and Sunderland City.
UOE
Led by postmaster Elliot Jacobs, UOE operates nine 'Mains' Post Office branches, a Banking Hub, and a group of award-winning stationery stores across London, Hertfordshire and Surrey. With 28 years of retail experience — including over a decade as a Postmaster — Elliot brings deep expertise in running high-performing, community-driven retail operations, and is a non-executive director of POL.
Eight of UOE’s nine Post Office branches are former Directly Managed Branches (DMBs). Together, the UOE network serves over 2 million customers annually and employs more than 60 team members. All of UOE’s London Stores and Post Offices are open seven days a week.
UOE will operate these branches in London and beyond: Baker Street, Barnet, Brixton, Cambridge City, Golders Green, Hampstead, Harlesden, Harold Hill, High Holborn, Houndsditch, Islington, Kennington Park, Kilburn, Kingsbury, Kingsland High Street, Knightsbridge, Leighton Buzzard, London Bridge, Lower Edmonton, Milton Keynes, Mount Pleasant, Northolt, Oxford, Paddington Quay, Raynes Park, Roman Road Bethnal Green, St Peters Street St Albans, Stamford Hill, Wealdstone, and Windsor.
ZCO
ZCO is a well-established company based in Bolton that operates 21 Post Offices across the UK, which were all former directly managed Post Offices, as well as four banking hubs. ZCO was founded in 2014 by Zubeir Patel and now the Managing Director is Tan Musa. He has well-organised regional teams to assist with the running of Post Offices in England, Scotland and Wales.
A sister company, called Potent Solutions, set up in 2008, operates Post Office branches on a temporary basis to maintain service to communities. However, it is ZCO that is taking on these new franchised branches. The retail alongside their branches is traditionally cards and stationery. Bespoke retail also has included luggage and luggage accessories, souvenirs and beach equipment, depending upon each unique location.
ZCO will operate across the country: Bexhill-on-Sea, Canning Town, Cricklewood, Dereham, Edinburgh City, Furness House Barrow-in-Furness, Glasgow (West Nile Street), Haddington, Kendal, Kettering, Matlock, Melville Road Hove, Morecambe, Poulton-Le-Fylde, Rotherham, Saltcoats, South Ockendon, and Springburn Way Glasgow.
Run by postmaster Mikesh Parekh, Firstclass Retail operate thirteen Post Office branches in and around Greater Manchester, the majority of which are larger, Mains-style branches. With over fifteen years of experience as a postmaster, Mikesh has a wealth of experience in running post offices at the heart of communities. Being a postmaster runs in the family, with Mikesh having learned from his father at his branch in Oldham, who himself was a postmaster for fifteen years.
Mikesh also runs Interim Solutions, which delivers a number of temporary post offices. Between the two businesses, Mikesh currently operates around 30 branches and employs over 170 staff. Mikesh has a deep commitment to the community he serves and has a track record of working with local stakeholders to safeguard Post Office services.
Firstclass will run branches at Barnes Green Manchester, Breck Road Liverpool, Didsbury Village, Eccles, Hyde, Leigh, Old Swan Liverpool, and Salford City.
Liam Searle is at the helm of South Coast Retail in Dorset. He is the third generation of his family connected to Post Office branches. Both his grandmother and his father worked at Directly Managed Branches as counter clerks. His father’s career progressed to being an area manager before he took on Swanage Post Office when it was being franchised. Liam then took over as postmaster for Swanage in 2019. His Dad still helps at his Swanage branch and runs the outreach services.
The 36-year-old now also operates successful branches in Dorchester, Sherborne, Swanage, and Weymouth, plus three outreach services for three communities in the Swanage area. A banking hub also opens in Sherborne in June. Liam runs a close-knit company with 50 employees. The retail offering at his branches is cards, stationery, gifts and soft drinks.
SCR's new branches will be at Bideford, Liskeard, Mutley Plymouth, Newquay, Paignton and Teignmouth.
New operators for about another 30 branches are to be announced and will be added here.
This looks like bad news for folk like me. If out and about I get the latest commemorative from a directly managed Post Office which always have them, or, at least know what they are and that the 2nd class definitives have sold out. At sub post offices they usually tell me, once I have explained what a commemorative stamp is, that I do not want a horizon label because it is allowed to put stamps on parcels and that I do not need 48hr tracking for Aunty's birthday card. And I do not want to pay the extra 3p on an app...
ReplyDeleteAnother nail in the coffin of stamp collecting. Since my nearest Crown Post Office was replaced by a branch inside WH Smiths, they've hardly stocked any commemorative stamps and don't ever seem to know when a new issue is due. Soon the only way to get commemorative stamps will be by mail order from Tallents House, and that will reduce most of our stamps to the status of undesirable issues, not made available to the public at face value.
ReplyDeleteRemember that all these will initially take on existing premises. In Dereham's case that is part of the Royal Mail sorting office building. What the financial arrangements will be between RM and ZCO we will never know, but despite the glum faces when I went earlier in the week it is to be expected that, again initially, some existing staff will be retained. I'll see what I can find out about continued supplies of philatelic material.
ReplyDeleteAlso bear in mind that some of these will have SSKs, so it's as well to see what's going on there as well - they are likely to get the new machines when they get the makeover that is to be expected.