Blarney Post Master: When you open these doors you never know who might walk in...

IT’S not just the tourists who have kissed the Blarney Stone and who come into Blarney Post Office to send postcards across the Atlantic - all kinds of people frequent the friendly premises.

“People from all walks of life across the community do their business at the post office,” says postmaster Daniel Lehane, who took over Blarney Post Office on May 31, 2022.

Business is not just about stamps or collecting the pension.

“It is much more than that,” says Daniel. “There are 600 products on offer at An Post, most people are only aware of half of them.

The first year here, it was all about informing the community about An Post services, telling them that we have this and that, and that most financial transactions, like bill-paying, can be done at the local post office.

When Daniel became aware that Blarney Post Office was up for grabs, he threw his hat into the ring.

“I was abroad in Australia and New Zealand for five years working in companies,” he says.

“I thought that was long enough and when I saw the post office contract on offer, I went for it, and I was thinking it was good to be able to provide employment for staff in the community.”

Daniel had no experience, but he did know how valuable the services of the post office were to the people in the community and why they should never close.

“An Post never wanted to close Blarney Post Office,” says Daniel.

“The closure of a post office is a blow to any community. It affects people’s independence, dignity and safety.”

The Blarney one was staying put.

“An Post just needed to get someone else in when the previous postmaster retired,” says Daniel. “There were five interested parties, and three applications went in, and I happened to get it.”

Daniel took the plunge.

“I had no previous experience,” he says. “But I was intrigued about the challenge of running a business. I knew if the post office was run right, it would be a good business with lots of opportunity.”

He had a good record under his belt.

I had 16 years sales experience though.

And he had the gift of the gab.

“I do like having the chat with the customers,” says Daniel.

Sometimes that proves taxing.

“An older man who comes here regularly, a nice man, always addresses me in Irish!” says Daniel.

“He always throws a new phrase at me, testing my limited Irish. I answer as best as I can using stuff I learned in school.”

Daniel gives as good as he gets.

“I’ll respond to him in Irish and then ask him a question in Irish,” says Daniel.

“We have a bit of fun. He tries to catch me out!”

The post office staff are ready for all eventualities.

“One of the staff here speaks German,” says Daniel.

“When German tourists come in, she can converse with them in their own language. They are often pleasantly surprised.”

Daniel was surprised when rumours were floating about that Blarney Post Office was closing.

“I have no idea how that rumour came about,” says Daniel.

“As long as I am here, Blarney Post Office will remain open. It’s going nowhere. The post office won’t close as long as people keep coming into us.

“We are a very busy post office. I decided I’d pretty much run my own business and see how it goes. Luckily, it is going really well.”

What does Daniel like most about the business?

“My favourite aspect is the diverse nature of it,” he says.

“Every customer is different. A lot of people come in to do the same things like posting letters, collecting social welfare payments and all the other things thrown into the mix.”

Daniel likes the variety.

“Every day is different,” he says.

When you open the doors in the morning, you never know who is going to walk in.

Daniel also took over a second post office, Ballydaheen, Mallow.

“The assistant manager, Cian, looks after the day to day running of Ballydaheen,” says Daniel.

“I go and check in regularly to make sure everything is flowing.

“Ballydaheen has a bigger population than Blarney, and a different demographic. It is a three-man position whilst Blarney is a two-man position.

“Again, I like the shift of pace in Ballydaheen Post Office, and it is always interesting to see who will come in the door.”

A friendly face is always welcome.

“People like to do their business face-to-face with someone who has a smile on their face,” says Daniel.

“The people of Blarney are very accommodating, they are all patient and willing to wait in the queue if the person before them is taking a bit longer to finish their transactions.

“Things are never awkward in the post office, the customers value the services that we provide and they realise everyone is entitled to do their business. That made the first year for me as postmaster very easy.”

Daniel likes promoting the range of services that An Post provide.

“Customers ask me, ‘Can I lodge money? I am Bank of Ireland’.

“I say, ‘Yes you can,’ then they are very happy that they are saved a trip to Ballincollig or Blackpool to lodge money in the bank.

“I notice more of the younger generation coming in to use our financial services. They realise how handy they are. And visitors who are passing the post office might decide to do their returns that day.”

Blarney Post Office caters for everybody.

“We’re offering more,” says Daniel.

“The post office is not a convenience store or a corner shop, but given our good location where there are a lot of sports clubs around, we offer sports accessories and energy drinks, so people can grab them and go if they are training.

We also offer local goods like honey.

There are many plusses to Blarney Post Office. “We’ve never had a big Lotto winner, but we’ve had small wins,” says Daniel.

“We’d like to get a big win; you never know in the future.”

Daniel is committed to the future of the town’s post office.

“It is 95% me,” he says. “I might take a half day off if the staff allow me!”

Daniel says the working day is fun.

“It is fun, it is never monotonous, never boring. No day is ever the same.

“At 5.30pm, I often wonder, where did the day go?”

Daniel always has days like this.

“The chat is constant,” he says. “We’re always smiling.

“If it’s raining outside, we say it’s lovely, if it is roasting, we say it’s lovely

“! The customers laugh at us. They are all relaxed and enjoy coming in.”

And on a bad day?

“We always put a positive spin on things,” says Daniel.

And he gets to brush up on his Irish!