Customers react to 'refreshing' change to Australia Post stores: 'Can't believe it'
This week, Australians weighed in on a social media post in which a shopper shared that their local Indooroopilly post office in Brisbane had been transformed. "I simply cannot believe it," they said. "The post office is a post office again; gone are all the non-postal services, the crowded feeling, the $2 shop, and the queues."
Several hundred Aussies responded, many saying they'd noticed a similar design upgrade at the post office in their area. "Same for me today. I went to the Brisbane General Post Office (GPO) and was blown away by how pleasant it was to be in there," a fellow Queenslander said.
"I went into my local post office about a month ago, and they were rearranging things ... This sounds like a great step in the right direction," said another. "I noticed my local post office had removed pretty much all non-postal related goods, and it's pretty refreshing," a third agreed.
Speaking to Yahoo News, an Australia Post representative confirmed the company is making some major formatting changes to a number of its stores.
What's changing in Australia Post stores?
The spokesperson explained Australia Post is trialling a new initiative aimed at modernising select post offices, with a focus on clearing excess stock and updating outdated layouts. The changes, which some customers have already observed and discussed online, are designed to make stores look cleaner, less cluttered, and more contemporary.
"In selected Australia Post corporate post offices, we are trialling a simplified and streamlined merchandise range, meaning customers might notice a fresh new look," the spokesperson said. "As well as making core products easier to find, these updates are making our post offices easier to navigate for customers with accessibility needs."
The spokesperson said the company continues "to explore ways to improve customer experience". They pointed to the recently unveiled "Australia Post Parcels" — a modern-format post office designed to make sending, collecting and returning parcels faster and more convenient.
The current refresh, a separate initiative to the Post Parcels outlets, is limited to a small number of post offices that are directly owned and operated by Australia Post.
These differ from the majority of the postal network, which consists of licensed post offices run by independent operators, often as local small businesses.
A key goal of the redesign is to improve accessibility for people with mobility challenges. The updated layout is intended to make it easier for all customers to move around the space.
Earlier this year, it was announced the country's first-ever talking post boxes had been rolled out, in a bid to bring people closer together. The three interactive mailboxes, located in Canberra, Sydney and Traralgon, in Victoria's Gippsland region, use smart sensors to grab the attention of those walking past, and encourage them to write to a loved one the old-fashioned way — by sending a postcard.
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