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AN POST RETURNED to profit last year having made a €12.4 million loss in 2016 – and a lot of the success is down to the new €1 postage stamp.
The price increase of 39% for a postage stamp – brought from 72 cent to €1 – was controversial when it was introduced last year. But An Post’s CEO today claimed that the increase brought in €60 million last year and helped the service make an operating profit of €8.4 million last year.
This puts revenue back at 2008 levels.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, David McRedmond said that the price increase was a “large part” of the financial turnaround.
It was an exceptional price increase. we had to do it due to the finances of the country.
He said that the price increase brought An Post in line with the EU average, which is €1.10, and that the increase did not turn many people off An Post’s services.
The fall resulting off from the price increase was ‘a lot less than people indicated
Customers stuck with An post – and they stuck with us because the quality of service, which has been invested in over the past decade, is first class.
Services
McRedmond also attributed the profit to the relaunch of An Post’s parcel businesses and falling costs.
The relaunch, which required negotiations with the Communications Workers Union, now sees parcels delivered on Saturdays and later at night. Volumes in the parcel area are up 30%, according to McRedmond.
It’s all about re-positioning the business for the long term and for the future.
An Post has worked to increase its share of the e-commerce business, he said, by working with companies like Zara, Amazon and Boohoo on deliveries.
We’re getting more and more of them every day because they realise we’re the people who deliver everywhere in Ireland and we actually have the highest quality of business.
Post office closures
McRedmond said that An Post is about to announce a “breakthrough agreement” with the postmasters union following threats of post office closures across the country. In the past 25 years, close to 800 post offices have been shut down across the country.
The agreement will see €50 million invested in the future of the network.
As a result, An Post does not envision any compulsory closures, McRedmond said.
We are going to guarantee that everybody is within 15km of a post office, that a community of over 5,000 people has a post office. We are going to completely refurbish all of the post offices and we are going to do a very wide range of new services.
Government contract
Today, the €51m social welfare contract between the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection Regina Doherty and An Post was renewed. The contract allows An Post provide pensions, child benefit and other social welfare payments in cash at post offices.
Last year’s contract amounted to 33.6 million payments.
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I sent a letter once, I think it was around 2008
@Daniel Wilson: agree. Can’t think of a slower more inefficient method of transferring info…..oh wait there’s always pigeons
@Daniel Wilson: And you’ve never received any mail since then? Taxes, utility bills, hospital letters, wedding invitations, parcels etc?
@Harry Whitehead: all of this could be done electronically at this stage. Using physical post wastes so many resources for the transfer of information – paper, petrol, manpower.
@Sean Stevenson: Parcels and packages can be delivered electronically now? Brilliant! Beamed to your living room like in Star Trek or how does it work now?
@Neville Patterson: Pigeons can fly hundreds of miles in a few hours. Twice as fast as an post
@Gareth Cooney: Are they faster than an email?
@Jimmy Corkhill: now, read slowly where I say “transfer of information” – generally meaning letters, bills, stuff that could be done online. Obviously the post will always remain for parcels.
@Sean Stevenson: OK, just read it again. Slowly. The previous commenter included “parcels” in his list of items still sent by post. The first line of your reply said “all of this could be done electronically at this stage”. I took the “all of this” bit to include parcels. Apologies for any misunderstanding.
It good to hear that their back to making a profit, now wait for the old UNION to shout about a wage increase and to square one,
@conriel: An Post staff have, for decades, being treated like dirt compared to other semi state or public sector organisations. I worked there for six months about ten years ago in the head office and there was an understandable sense of paranoia and distrust among the staff, so much so that the three or four of us youngsters who were brought in on cheap contracts were going to cause further degredadation of their pay and conditions. People were literally afraid to work with us. Fortunately for them and us we were almost all let go after the six months.
Am I the only one who loves getting post?
Well they aren’t doing it because they’re sound are they. Can’t be doing it free now lads.
@James Wond: well they always deliver
Bit of a joke when the stamp costs more then the card
It must be all the online shopping that we are doing
I use their ‘My address pal’ service for ordering from the UK, it’s efficient and cheap.
If I’m sending parcels though, I won’t use the post office as the sub offices near home and work still close for lunch and that’s stupid.
If the postmasters in towns and rural areas came into the modern age, they wouldn’t have to complain so much.
€1 a stamp? No wonder I’ve noticed a drop in volume of my fanmail…
Not surprised their in profit. Had to post what they call an “over sized envelope” to day €1.80 to post it!!
Profit!!!!
I think the journal should do a poll on how long it will be before there is a pay rise demand from the unions.
My guess is less than two weeks.
There was a price increase in postal rates two weeks ago. Its cheaper now to send parcels to the UK and Europe by courier.
@Ciaran De Bhal: i was under impression it always was cheaper to send by courier. I tried an post once and left quickly after getting quote. Courier was third of the price.
Yep….online shopping.
I didn’t send Xmas Cards!
Express post now €8.15 standard letter next day delivery……
@FartyTowels: Do they deliver on weekends yet?
I’ve found them getting considerably better. As the article says, it’s still cheaper than the EU average, and not everyone is confident in using or indeed wants to communicate by email.
Also will they award the postmen and women countrywide who do the same work as there colleagues The Collection and Delivery Allowance which they are entitled to.
Will they give the staff a pay increase without any conditipns “Lets See “
have your say