After town halls or EHPADs, the Post Office moved to the farm. A partnership was signed between Chambers of Agriculture France et the La Poste group in February 2024 to create relay points on farms. Seven departments have applied and ten relay points have already been created. There are some three in Normandy, all in Eure. One of them is located in Chambois, about fifteen kilometers south of Évreux, along the departmental road 32. In a brand new building, the farmer, Gatienne Lethrosne sells, among other things, potatoes. from its neighboring farm in Plessis-Grohan and, since mid-September, postal products: “Stamps, envelopes, parcel boxes” she lists with a big smile, and “right next door, we receive letters and registered mail which could not be delivered by post”. The relay point has one advantage, its opening hours: Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and from 1:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. except Monday and Tuesday when the Bienvenue à la ferme boutique closes the curtain at 4:00 p.m.
Laurent Philippot
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Satisfied customers
Marie-Françoise is already a regular at the store, she comes every week to do her shopping but this is the first time she has used the postal service: “It’s very practical” she said, “because before, you had to go to Saint-Sébastien-de-Morsent first, cross a valley and more than ten to fifteen kilometers”. Proximity is the key word for the La Poste group and a win-win partnership for its Transformation Resources director in Normandy: “The customer finds what suits him nearby and the merchant, in this case the farm, sometimes finds new audiences who didn't even know their farm. I go and buy a stamp and I come back with a leek and a stamp” explains Frédéric Bonté.
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This is the case of Annick, who came to collect a package. The postman showed up at her home while she was away. Passing notice and identity card in hand, she takes the opportunity to do some shopping: “I notice they have vegetables so I take some” she said, placing her leeks on the crate.
Develop short circuits and bring rurality to life
When La Poste offered the network Welcome to the farm To test this system, Marie-Louise Lara, the Promotion, Quality Monitoring and Partnerships advisor for the network in Eure, did not hesitate. It immediately identified operators likely to host this new service, seeing the benefit that consumers could derive from it: “They realize that they can have access to local products that are not more expensive than elsewhere“. A fourth farm relay point should open in Eure by the end of the year. The experiment could be deployed throughout France if it is deemed conclusive.
Relay points on the farm in Eure
France
