Locals are trying to rally together to save their local Post Office and local RS McColl’s store just days before they are set to close in their tight knit community.
The closure of the vital amenities was announced by Morrisons supermarket chain after they said that it was not possible to keep open all 132 stores that they had acquired from RS McColl’s.
This has led to the devastating news that the Post Office and convenience store on St John’s Road Corstorphine will be forced to close their doors forever.
READ MORE: Edinburgh neighbourhood to lose supermarket as bosses announce sudden closure
The Post Office is set to cease operating on Monday January 16 with the RS McColl’s closing on January 22.
Locals expressed their dismay at this decision, with elderly customers fearing for the loss of community that will come with the stores closure as well as the migration of services online which can be difficult to access for the non-IT savvy residents of the area.
It is understood that staff at both sites are being made redundant in the midst of a cost of living crisis and this scenario was also highlighted as a cause for concern for those using the businesses.
John Hasty, 82, who has lived in the community for 42 years after moving from Glasgow, says that he has been visiting the shop for as long as he has lived in Corstorphine.
He said: “It will be inconvenient as you get to know the people who work there so well. There are other ways of posting stuff but it feels like a personal loss as we get used to the extremely friendly and efficient people there.
“It is more than a little sadness at the loss. Years ago there was the daughter of Chick Murray who worked there and we would chat away. My wife would say you went to buy a stamp and were there for 20 minutes blethering. It will be a huge miss.
“They have managed to save the Post Office in Clermiston and it would be great to see them save this one as well. I guess it is just business sometimes though.
“I feel very sorry about people losing their jobs. I immediately think this can’t be good but they are resilient people and I certainly hope they will get a new job but it depends what age you are.
“When I was young my uncle had a shop in Glasgow and everyone knew him in the community and it feels as though we are losing that here - where everyone knew the local shop staff and they knew us personally.”
Jamie Robb, 62, also shared his disappointment at the closure of both the shop and the Post Office. He says that it is hard enough for people to get jobs at the moment without more businesses closing down.
He said: “I use the Post Office every week to pay my phone or electricity bills which is great but now it is away I am finding it hard to find somewhere else to pay them.
“There are not as many pay zones as there used to be and so it will be missed. I am worried about everything going online as an older person. I like to deal in cash and don’t like to do things online.
“Anyone losing their job is ridiculous in this climate. A friend of mine is unemployed and he gets hounded all the time to get work and a job locally but there isn’t the work there that will pay well.
“I am hoping the staff will get a good payout as people have worked here for decades. I’ve been using this store for 25 years and I’d love to see it be saved as it is an essential service for people like me.
Oldham, 71, has lived across the road from the store for 37 years and says that he has been using the business throughout this time.
He said: “It is shocking for the community. I use the Post Office and I just do not go online unless I was forced to. It is also shocking that staff are being made redundant. I support the petition in saving the store.
“These people are being told by a huge company in Morrisons that they will be closing them down after so long. It has been a huge boost to the whole community and it is shocking to me.”
Another anonymous resident added their dismay at Morrisons plans to open a local store in Pennywell in the North of the city rather than keeping the unit in Corstorphine open.
She said: “Them opening the shop on Pennywell Road is no good for us in Corstorphine. I have lived in the area since 1971 and have used the shop way back in the day all the time.
“But the sad thing is I do not have to use a Post Office as much now which is probably why it is closing down. I hope the staff can get new jobs. This is what happens with these big businesses.
“It has been here for as long as I can remember. I used to do all my shopping in Corstorphine and we have seen it all die away but I guess we have all moved online nowadays.”
Local SNP councillor, Euan Hyslop, started an online petition to try to save the services and says that there has been an outpouring of concern from his constituents who will be devastated to see the Post Office and shop removed from their community.
He said “It is disappointing that the process of closure has gotten this far without a comment from Missions or Post Office directed to residents. This is after an outpouring of concern from the community who are worried and want to see a continuation of the services.
“Council is moving towards a model of 20 minute neighbourhoods which is built around the concept that everyone can walk or wheel to all the vital services that they need in an area. Therefore the closure of the community Post Office is a step in the wrong direction.
“Over 300 people have signed the petition in the first three days just on social media alone and the vast majority of the community feel as though this will be a massive loss.
“The hope for me in the next couple of days is that a resolution can be found to save this service. Unfortunately I have not heard back from either the Post Office or Morrisons when I tried to contact them.
It feels as though they are not interested. My impression is that with the massive Morrisons along at the Gyle, they do not see a need for a local store in Corstorphine.
“This is despite the proposed new store on Pennywell Road, that is proposed by the company, being situated very close to a major supermarket in Granton.”
A Post Office spokesperson said: “We regret to confirm that Morrisons have taken the difficult decision to close some McColl’s stores that hosted Post Offices, due to the unprofitability of the retail in that store, not helped by the difficult high street conditions facing retailers.
“St John’s Post Office will close on 16 January. Corstorphine Post Office is less than 10 minutes’ walk away. It’s open from 7am to 7pm Monday to Saturday and from 7am to 5pm on Sundays. We ask our customers to use that branch for their Post Office services.”
A spokesperson for Morrisons said: “We very much regret the closure of some McColl's stores, but a number of them have been loss-making for some time and there are 132 stores where there is no realistic prospect of achieving a breakeven position in the medium term.
“We recognise the particular importance of the community Post Office counters to their local areas and we are continuing to work with the Post Office to explore ways to offer that service to the community.”
You can sign the petition to save the businesses here.
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