5 February, 2026

NZ Post axes service from Hauraki Corner

Hauraki Corner is losing its postal outlet, with the shopping strip’s stationery store among 142 urban retail partners NZ Post is cutting adrift.
Valentine’s Stationer owner Andrew Cai says the decision puts his entire business at risk and he will likely have to close.
Customers were shocked to be losing the postal facility, probably from mid-June, he told the Observer. “It’s not good for the community.”
A Takapuna woman visiting the store who did not want to be named agreed, saying it was handy, with plentiful parking and provided helpful service, such as assisting people to fill in forms. Personally, she preferred the security of dropping off parcels rather leaving them out for courier pick-ups and risking theft.

“I always come here, I’m sending a family heirloom today – I want to know it will get there.”
NZ Post announced the cuts to its network across the country last week. Locally, they include the loss of two post counters serving the Navy Base at Devonport from depots at 1 Queens Pde and on Jim Titchener Pde.
Takapuna and Devonport retain their centres located in Paper Plus stores.
Milford town centre lost its service in October 2024, with the owners of the stationery store that provided it deciding to close at the same time.
Cai, aged 46, who bought the Hauraki store nine years ago from a long-term owner, said he had put hundreds of thousands of dollars into his business. Although he had diversified into computer repairs and had a Lotto counter, it was postal services that brought in 50 per cent of his trade.
From what trade will be left, the father of two who lives in Forrest Hill says he will struggle to pay costs and rent or find a buyer. “I can’t get any dollars back. What will I do next?”
He says partner stores shoulder the costs of keeping stores open, and NZ Post should have sought public feedback on reducing services. “The post shop is the link to the community.” It brought people in who visited other shops as well.
Customers included people from Belmont and Narrow Neck, but most were from the Hauraki neigbourhood. “They don’t want to go to Takapuna or Devonport.” Parking charges or difficulty finding a park put them off.
The first inkling he got of change was last October when NZ Post asked stores if they wanted to remain in its network. He said he did, but in mid-January was told the Hauraki partner deal would end in mid-June.
NZ Post says changes in mail usage drove the latest cuts. Auckland loses 29 centres in all. Those going from the wider North Shore are at Beachhaven, Northcross, North Harbour and Albany village.
To allow the network reductions, NZ Post secured agreement for a change in its deed of understanding with the government to reset minimum post shop requirements for the first time since the 1980s.
NZ Post general manager – consumer Sarah Sandoval said much had changed since then. “Customers now rely far more on NZ Post stores for collecting and sending parcels compared to letters.”
The network needed rebalancing to reflect this, she said.
But there would still be more NZ Post stores across the country than any New Zealand supermarket or bank branch network.
“Ninety percent of Kiwis living in urban areas will still be within four kilometres of a New Zealand Post store,” she said.
Upgrades to some remaining stores and new retail hubs for parcel handling were planned.
Closing dates for stores vary, starting in May, with customers to be informed in advance through in-store notices and on the NZ Post website, which lists the nearest other options.

Please consider supporting The Rangitoto Observer by clicking here: