The US Mint and PO?

I don't know if anyone is aware but our PO is having major issues in the US and is thinking about dropping Saturday delivery. I haven't read much about it but I heard that since the advent of the internet and major competition the US post office will have to make adjustments. They are currently letting some employees go and will continue to downsize and/or think of better ideas.

Well I thought of an idea awhile back and wanted to see what y'all thought about it. Maybe the federal gov't should just combine the services of the US post office and the US mint together, what do you think?

If that was ever to happen they could have some current major post office sites as pick up satellite offices where one could just go and pick up your order of coins. Also we wouldn't have to buy anything from a third party at a premium. All current post office sites would become US mint sites as well, surely you couldn't pick up coins at all of them but they may be able to make it work somehow. Anyone?

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There has to be a balance, Saturday delivery is a must!! The back
Up in receiving letters and such would be significant and unrealistic!!

 

Wednesday would be more practical. if they close Saturday, Mondays box will be overflowing

 

I agree with mpcusa. The backup would be horrible. I think it would be a great idea to mix the PO and the US mint. Around here there are more PO than coin shops. I would enjoy that.

 

I think U.S Post Office had suggested closing on Tuesday or Wednesday would be the prefered closing date as Monday is the busiest day of the week. This was about a year ago.

 

I don't think that they should combine them based on the liability with robbery and other factors. Down here there are so many P.O. every 5 min. and not a coin store in over 50 miles.

 

that has actually been in the talks for some time now. As a matter of fact I was listening to MPR yesterday and here in Ohio they were talking about dropping Saturday's Mail due to losing 1.3 Billion Dollars last year (please dont quote me on that but I am pretty sure that is what was stated).

Here's an issue that I foresee:
If on Salary then 1 of 2 things will happen still A. lay off people (hard to do especially if they are in a union) or B. reduce their pay. Let's say they work 40 hours a week now, and if they close Saturdays now they work 36 hours a week and get paid for 40...I doubt that would happen and if that is the case I would want their jobs

On top of that they are only open till 5:30 Weekdays (most people work until 5) which may not allow their customers enough time to get to the P.O. to get their mail out. If they stay open later then they may have to start paying people to work overtime..




Picture shows rate increases since 97 to 09.

That's my 2 cents...about its worth

-Shrek

 

We hear a lot of negative predictions from the likes of MSNBC, and virtually none of them ever come true.

The PO is not going to shut down operations during the week.

I would be very surprised if they shut down on Saturday. We'll see.

 

It's easy to see why people complain about postage rates. FWIW, Canadian postage rates are much higher. They were 45c in 1997 and 57c now. Yes, Canada has "smaller dollars", but that doesn't cover the difference.

 

I like the idea that the USPS be broadened to offer more services but seriously they'd start charging more because those branches would require more overhead, costs for security for insured items on the premises and increased staff to deal with new services. Products from the Mint would need to be strictly rolled out for fairness of availability and packaged so that consumers couldn't cherry-pick in person. The majority of PO branches under serve their community and often lend more confusion rather than education of the public regarding shipping etiquette, procedure, and general services available.

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Anything to get the Mint closer to and more in touch with the customer might be a good solution for better service but it will bring with it new costs and issues. Would collectors start standing in overnight lines awaiting the newest coins to roll out? Would people be more individually at risk of thefts by crooks watching you leave the PO with your box of AGEs and AGBs, etc? Right now you can leave the PO with an anonymous box filled with PMs and no one likely knows what you have nor attempts to rob you. If you walk out with a Mint bag and new products that could be a risk.

Secure locations like banks or at least their main branches might be an good local option for the Mint to set up or distribute new products. Distribution of coins to retail kiosks seems like a problem as well but I do wish there were more local options like the kiosk in Union Station DC, especially in urban areas that could service the public more and put more of a public face on the Mint. Seems it would help the hobby and collectors could save on shipping which always seems an issue amongst collectors, even if they look the other way buying gas and spending time to drive a long way to their nearest Mint retail location.

 

Well, actually it may cost a little more but it already does because of the third party buying we are forced to do. Also, it may not cost more at all and in some cases be cheaper. Less packaging, mailing boxes, list, registered mailings, I would think the US mint would save money with this idea as well. You may be able to get your delivery alot earlier by walking into a satellite office in a city near you or in the city you live in today. I don't know, something to think about for sure. :bow:

 

fret:

Less packaging... only if the Mint has a 'service window' set up so there is no store for the customer to shop or pick and choose one set of coins over another hoping for better coin conditions.

As it is now, phone, internet and mail options are first come first serve with no opportunity of the customer to cherry pick off a shelf. You get what the fulfillment center sends you, good or bad.

If retail locations existed, they'd need to create more protective packaging and the kind that can't be opened in store plus have security features introduced unless they hold all products behind the counter until check out and give no choice as to what product out of the inventory you receive for a given product purchased.

Shipping supplies and fees would persist with phone, internet and mail services but in retail locations those same costs wouldn't disappear but rather add to the expenses of in-store overhead: employee salaries, shopping bags, cashier equipment, utility bills, security... Distribution (mailing the product to the retail location) would continue to be a cost paid by the customer.

A retail Mint location isn't going to offer savings to either the Mint or the customer, but it may improve sales and customer relations given a retail locations prescience.

I have visions of coin release dates generating queues like the latest Star Wars film has geeks waiting on lawn chairs for the first mid-night showing... or Boss tickets... or Walmart on Black Friday...

 

Adding the Mint to the POffice is an interesting idea. They could offer all the items for sale and those that are sent to authorized dealers could go direct which would help offset the mints part of the cost. And for the PO they would have decreased costs from the mints rents/commissions.
I don't think this will happen but it's worth a look.

As for the post office-I dont see how dropping a day is a profitable idea. Their competition is already getting them. How is offering less service going to help. Imagine McDonalds is loosing money so their idea is to be open less days a week. they still have tons of fixed cost that not being open another day would cost them in sales/profits to help pay for the fixed costs.
How about they lower their retirement costs. Show me a non government job that offers their type of benefits that makes money. Sure there's the congress's bene's or the auto makers but how much money are they making
They should be doing fine with their economy's of scale and scope if they would keep their package prices lessened to increase sales.

 

Not that it would ever happen, but, if the mint had branch offices on the PO they would just have to set up a case with available coins and gifts. You would give the PO worker the item # you wanted and they would go retrieve your order.
It would not make sense to hire people just to sell mint products in the PO. Other than at release times, a dedicated mint product worker would be sitting on their hind end most of the time.
I must say though, if it were as easy as walking to the post office to buy mint products, I'm sure I would buy more than I do now.

 

Looking at the actual services available from the U.S.P.S, Iam amazed that
There losing money as thay state, But closing during the week!! Doesnt sound
Very realistic, The bottom line is keeping the mail flowing and not raising
The rates!!

 

The Postal service is expected to drop Saturday delivery in 2011.

I think it is primarily more affordable cell phone calling plans, texting/email, online billing/banking, and more competitive private parcel services (ups, fedex, courier services, etc) that is causing less usage.

Also, one would think the Internet would INCREASE postal usage. I mean, with access to an increased national and global marketplace available, online shopping purchases need to be delivered somehow...postal services. Even outside of coins, most of my purchases are done online and are shipped to me. And I purchase globally whereas, before the Internet I was primarily limited to local purchases. And I NEVER used to write a letter to a friend and put it in the mail. So for me, I'm using postal services now more than ever.

Saturday service will be missed.

-LTB

 

I agree Louie! I also think the USPS right now cannot keep up with volume or in attempts at repricing their service tiers too frequently without customers balking and going elsewhere with shipping needs. If the USPS could reprice on a daily basis what the actual postage would cost, it would likely prohibit direct marketing sales that are currently available to online and mail shoppers and this may make it impossible to serve the individual customer due to outrageous postage rates. Just as soon as all merchants realise that their customers can and will find almost anything in other markets for more competitive prices and only price at the lowest msrp (the same product in one market should be priced the same in any another market) can the USPS expect to see volume in such sales drop off. USPS customers are the direct cause of current volume issues due to buying from remote sources to get better prices, despite shipping costs, which merchants manage to keep costs down on by sheer volume of sales. The USPS and other carriers are just being used and it shows in how their customer service and attitude, both to individual customers and as an organization to their employees.

If anything changes in Saturday service, it ought to be that Saturday become the primary parcel delivery day for the week, unless a per parcel surcharge is paid for special week-day delivery of parcels. This would free weekday carriers of the burden of delivering most all parcels or missing those customers who are away from home during the week days, needing to leave a notice of delivery attempt and requiring the customer to come into the post office to pick up parcels that were undelivered. This would also reduce reattempted deliveries. Saturday parcel delivery might catch more people at home and available to accept such deliveries, especially those requiring a signature. They just need to properly introduce and adjust such a new delivery program to the public and work through the learning curve, business week deliveries of parcels based on size or weight or urgency might carry a separate surcharge for the exception and there is where they could make their profits.

sorry this got off topic.

 

That would never happen, it would be costly and we, (coin collectors)aren't that big an customer base or that important in the big scheme of things whatsoever!!!
Combining 2 Govt. agencys like that would be the worst idea I ever heard of - they can't run thier own much less two at once.

Here's what will happen though,
"""they will hem and haw around it, have commitees and subcommittes, hold a few hearings and then decide to keep it the same as it is (six days) with more tax dollars allocated and an increase in postage fees"""!
"""Then after a short while the top heads of USPS will give themself's some bonuses for having wheathered the storm, they will polute a few the accountants projected earnings figures and leave for other CEO positions in private buisness ,,,until the next time"""!!!

Been there done that, seen it a hundred times!

I admire and respect the individual postal worker time ten but the people that run it, well,,,

 

Federal employees can not belong to a union, it is called an association. If the Goverment wants to lay off the workers it can.

 

Yes the internet would increase packages but not letters. And they have competition in the package field not the letters one.
But if they are running letters already should they not be able to ship the packages cheaper then the others all things being equal (rents, labor, bene's, ect).