The Post Office. can they get any greedier... yes they can.....

blue_monkey_2

I posted this on the eBay board but thought I would come and have a moan here as well - will also post this on the small business board as this effects everyone in business and will have a serious knock on effect for the small business trader like myself. :mad:

Well, I have received a leaflet that outlines the new charges that will come in next year and quite frankly, I am stunned. :eek:

I sell underwear and sending a bra is going to go up from 46/64/79p to 94/119/206. I an slowly coming to terms with the fact that this time next year it looks like I'll have no business unless someone comes along and offers a better rate - who is going to pay £2.50 for a bra to be sent within the UK?? I am stunned and gutted - as well of course as being utterly p***ed off that the Royal Mail are forcing me away from home business. I choose to work from home so I can bring up my children (both of whom are under 3). I will have 2 choices, get a childminder and go out to work or give up work and have very little money to speak of.

Well, don't take my word for it - judge for yourselves.....

https://www.royalmail.com/pip

You will need to look under the 'More Information' section and then click 'here' for details on the postage rates. Sellers, prepare to be shocked, buyers, I wouldn't bother, I'll be off to the shops instead I guess!! Oh, and the biggest parcel you can send is 750g!! Wouldn't even be so bad if they had a decent service!!

C xx

Smiley_Mum

Can't access the info just now, error keeps coming up. Just have to wait and see if it'll come right sometime soon.

blue_monkey_2

I have posted the info several places, I think they must be on overload, LOL. Funny, they can't cope with email either - I guess you have to laugh at the irony!!

Trow

AFAIAA the changes are not supposed to result in increased income for Royal Mail, they are supposed to more accurately reflect the costs of moving larger items to their destination, so smaller heavier things will be cheaper but larger lighter things will be more expensive.

The amont of items that will be priced higher is supposed to be offset against those that will be cheaper - examples of these are books.

A combination of bulk and weight is commonly used to work out the price of shipping and if they are being honest in their 'no revenue increase' claims then I don't have a problem with it.

It wasn't long ago that the Royal Mail was making a loss, and if this is what they need to do to remain competitive thats fine - I value the service they provide and where I live their service is SO much better than the majority of courier companies.

blue_monkey_2

Having had 15 parcels go missing in one week I would not call theirs a good service. The reason they are making a profit is because of the people like me who make their living selling online and sending through the post - my postage costs are anything from £300 up to £500 a week, the same as others who sell online - they will lose this revenue, you can only do that if your customers are going to pay the postage - and they will not when other companies like Figleaves can offer free postage on their items.

I am sorry, I cannot even think about justifying a price increase as a good thing - for example - a larger size bra weighs 140g, the price of sending this will now rise from 64p to to £2.06. That is not justified for a package that is just over A5 size, there is now 4 price bands 80g, 110g, 130g and 750g, anything over 25mm is classed as a parcel. It IS about profit because they are trying to get more money out of people who sell online. The system has worked fine up and until now and they ARE making a profit now so there is no need to change unless of course, they are after more money.

Personally I am terrified, this will put me out of business, as will it others and this is not a good thing. While I know I have until next year it will put us back on the breadline with 2 kids to support and this worries me a great deal. Thumbs up to the Royal Mail!!

Oh, also like to say that Parcelforce destroyed my swinging crib which was sent by their service, now I never use them for larger parcels but always use Parcel2go or Postvan who have been A1 and collect from my house and then deliver the next day.

Trow

I think you are wrong in saying there is no need to change now. From January they are up against competition in every arena, and so will have to make their pricing struture more in line with what there competition is likely to do.

I don't think blaming Royal Mail for your financial situation is very fair! They are a business and have to what they think is right for them - they are not there purely to serve you as an individual. You have from January, when the competition in all sectors starts, until August to figure out your best way ahead and evaluate the competition. Just like you are responsible for figuring out how to price the goods you sell on ebay.

To me it seems reasonable to look at costs based on bulk - the more space it takes up in the van the more it costs them, effectively. Its logical and sensible and I don't see a problem with it.

I also notice that second class will go up to 1kg instead of stopping at 750g - thats also a positive step.

Of course this is just my opinion, and you are just as entitled to yours.

greenwich

I know this is not much comfort to you now but don't despair just yet. The free market can be wonderful thing. Royal Mail are losing their monopoly soon. There are then two possibilities. Either (i) it's just not possible to deliver your bras for much less than 206p and still make a profit. In that case, consider yourself lucky that people like me who buy books from Amazon have been subsidising you all this time. Or (ii) it is possible to deliver your bras for much less than 206p and still make a profit. In that case, you can be sure that some niche company will come along and offer you a good service at a good price.

Remember when everyone had to have their phone service with BT (actually, it was part of the Post Office till 1981)? Would you really want to go back to those days? While we may not get the same revolution with the post (telecoms is a high-growth business, snail mail is not) I think we may all be pleasantly surprised by new private postal services that come along.

Trow

greenwich wrote:

I think we may all be pleasantly surprised by new private postal services that come along.

I doubt it - maybe if you amended that to "I think everyone who lives in a highly populated area" then I might be inclined to agree with you.

blue_monkey_2

Of course, and I appreciate that but if you went into Tesco and found you had to pay £2.30 for a loaf of bread I am sure you would be as impressed as I am. Would you accept that they are 'just running a business'. Sorry but I am sure that you would feel the same way as I do now. Likewise if you found out petrol would rise another 70p a litre tomorrow with the oil companies saying 'that it was just business' you would be none to impressed either - what would you do?

The Royal Mail are a monopoly, at the moment we have no alternative who to use for our postage so they have us by the short and curlies and can charge what they like. I, like others, realise this will effect our businesses though and many people will lose their jobs through this - not just me so it is not just to suit me but thousands of others as well. As for the 2nd class band - does anyone send their mail 2nd class anyway?? I never do, people want their items the next day, not 5 days later on 2nd class posting. People send me cheques on 2nd class and woder why 4 days on they do not have their items, no one uses it.

The point you make them being a business is valid, but like any business, put your prices out of reach and no one will use you. But, they will force people out of business and that will be the small person like me who does not have the finances to fall back on or staff to lay off because I work from home and alone. Yes, I am annoyed and I feel it is fair to blame the Post Office becuase they will be forcing me out of business with their hikes - and this is what they are. They are not small price rises but 150-250% price rises on the postage rates that I pay now so yes, I will blame the Royal Mail when they put me out of business for, what is as I see it, their own gain. It works now so why change it - and it does work now, so the postmen have to do a little bit more work, that's life surely, hiking prices 250% is unfair unless of course you are turning over enough money to not have to think about it and the effect it will have on your business and life - which I am not.

greenwich

Trow wrote:

I doubt it - maybe if you amended that to "I think everyone who lives in a highly populated area" then I might be inclined to agree with you.

Fair point. I wasn't engaging in the debate about to what extent (if any) the urban majority should continue to subsidise the rural minority. I've no idea where the OP's business is. I was just trying to make the point that if the Royal Mail drops the ball, other companies will come along to pick it up once the monopoly is removed.

Newbird

Chill Hon, there will be better offers around I'm sure, this will affect me too, and I agree with the reasons you are worried. :think:

But hey, look what happend to BT when they were arrogant enough to charge higher prices than the new competion, they soon backed down, and had to become competitive again, they were losing so much business and it was their own stupid fault. Looks like RoyalMail have not read the book of past experience, too stupid to take the past on board maybe. Its a golden oppurtunity for the competition to beat em, and you can bet your bottom dollar now that the new Royal Mail pricing strategy is out there, the other companies able to offer a comparable service will be doing their sums right now to win the losses of Royal Mail customers that won't put up with it, like us.
Feel any better now??