In a move to increase revenue, the post office will start selling gift cards to consumers. The test will begin this May at about 2,000 post offices which already sell greeting cards.
According to the AP, initially only bank-issued gift cards will be sold, such as Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover. If the test is successful, it's likely to expand the offering to include store-issued gift cards such as the Amazon Gift Card.
While this may seem a bit surprising, the test is likely to be successful by gaining the dollars of consumers who didn't purchase a gift until showing up at the post office to mail their envelope.
However, the move to sell only bank-issued gift cards is a bit odd: bank-issued gift cards charge purchase fees and while they are redeemable just about anywhere their credit card counterpart is accepted, it's seems the post office is positioning itself to compete directly against the good old fashion check-by-mail instead of offering the more personal store-issued gift cards.
If you're in the market for a bank-issued gift card, be sure to take a look at ScripSmart's list of the best visa gift cards, before you buy.
