The nationwide retailer and mail order company Postie Plus is closing its mail-order business but jobs are safe, says managing director Paul Young.
Postie Plus will be staying in Westport, where its warehouses are located, Mr Young says.
"Of course we will. Have you seen how much money we have spent there
recently?" he said yesterday.
Postie had spent several hundred thousand dollars expanding its Westport warehouses.
"We have every carpenter in Westport tied up."
Staff were told of the change on Tuesday. Mr Young said there would be no impact on most of them and the two or three dedicated to the mail-order business had been offered alternative employment.
"Any change causes an element of uncertainty.
"However, I don't think this came as a significant surprise."
Mail order, which was only 5 per cent of Postie Plus' business, would close in September. It began its mail-order business in the 1980s.
"The mail-order business is no longer profitable and adds considerable complexity to the business," Mr Young said.
With more than 50 shops nationwide, retail is now Postie's core business.
"While commercially the decision is an easy one to make, it is a very sensitive and emotional issue given that it represents our heritage, as our name reflects.
"In reality, we have moved on while holding on to some aspects of our past," he said.
The company is expanding its retail network.
Mr Young said Deka's withdrawal had left a huge gap in the New Zealand retail market and Postie had to reshuffle resources to take advantage of the opportunity.
"We struggled to cope with volume in November and December.
"Logistically, we have a problem with warehouse space and this decision [mail-order closure] takes enormous pressure off us."
Postie Plus this year sent sample catalogues out in to the Australian market.
The results were favourable, Mr Young said, but any moves there would be at least two years away. Retail options closer to home were a priority in the short term.
- NZPA
