After being the victim of a major fraud and two episodes of vandalism, Stéphane Joannette, owner of the building housing some 800 Canada Post mailboxes, is hoping to reach an agreement with the Crown Corporation to avoid closing the Saint-Clet postal outlet.

“It's certain that we could terminate our agreement with Canada Post right now, but we don't want to do it in the wild. We're in discussions with Canada Post to find a win-win solution,” explained the businessman who has been operating the Canada Post franchise for nearly five years now.

Located on Route 201, the postal outlet and mailboxes are inside Mr. Joannette's company, Solutions S-E-R. Following acts of vandalism, the post-disaster services contractor reviewed the opening hours of the postal counter.

“Before, everyone had access to the post office boxes, but now that's no longer the case. I know it's not to everyone's liking, but it's a matter of the safety of my employees and the premises”, added Stéphane Joannette.

Operating at a loss

For Stéphane Joannette, operating the post office is more about providing a service to his community, not about making a profit.

“I've owned the building for 25 years, and the post office has always been there. I decided to keep it to continue offering this service to our population. A few years ago, I sold the franchise, but during the pandemic, Canada Post contacted me to see if I wanted to take it over. So it's my employees who run the postal counter,” says the businessman.

“Having postal outlets isn't very lucrative. Right now, we're running them at a loss every month. I lived in Saint-Clet for 30 years, so I know that the post office is important for the population. Basically, the operation is much more about providing service than making money. That said, it would be nice not to lose any either,” he continued.

What's more, the costs incurred as a result of the vandalism and fraud had to be borne by Mr. Joannette.  

In search of solutions

Talks between Canada Post and Stéphane Joannette are underway to find win-win solutions. 

“People think we can just remove the 800 post office boxes and put them somewhere else. It doesn't work that way. I have a very good relationship with the Canada Post team and discussions are going well. If the solution is to open a time slot on Saturdays for people who can't make it during the week, we could do that. Everything is on the table right now. We just need to find the right solution,” he concludes.