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February 4, 2003

(Letter sent to Banff Crag & Canyon)

Dear Editor:

Your December 18th editorial, "Canada Post must rethink its requirements", deserves a response.

Let me start by saying that Canada Post is concerned about quality customer service in Banff. If you look at any other national franchised chains in Banff, their image is consistent and fully recognizable to residents and the thousands of tourists that roar into town in the summer.

The world of retailing has changed dramatically and it is imperative that we offer customers a fresh, professional image, supported by the best current technology possible. Consistency in brand imaging helps to attract more customers to our postal outlets, thereby generating more revenue and making our retail network viable over the long term.

Private retail postal outlets were always intended as an added feature for a viable existing business, allowing the host business to increase customer traffic and generate increased sales. Retail postal outlets were never designed to be stand-alone businesses, and that is one of the reasons that private operators do not pay a franchise fee.

Your suggestion that Canada Post "soften its national standards and work out a fair compromise to encourage private outlets to continue operations" misses the point. We have "national standards" for a reason and the other 2,800 private outlets across Canada continue to operate very well under the current model.

There have been many erroneous numbers thrown around about the cost of renovations, and a business might be surprised to see how good the economics of having an outlet would be. We will work with any potential hosts to determine realistic costs to help them decide if a retail postal outlet would be a good business opportunity for them. We will continue with our efforts to find a suitable business in Banff in which to house a private retail postal outlet.

Sincerely,

John Caines
Manager, National Media Relations
Ottawa (613) 734-7675