Jersey Welcomes International Delegation of Postal Experts

Jersey Hosts International Forum to Address Postal Challenges Faced by Small Nations

More than 40 postal experts and delegates from small countries and island nations gathered in Jersey this week for the Small Posts and Islands Postal Forum—an event focused on sharing solutions to common industry challenges.

The conference, hosted for the first time by Jersey Post, served as a platform for exchanging ideas around modernization, digital transformation, and operational resilience within smaller postal services.

Randall Robinson of the Grenada Postal Corporation praised the forum's collaborative approach.“Working together, we discover solutions we can take home and implement,” he said. “You don’t always realise others are in the same boat. We’re still quite manual in Grenada, and seeing the automation here shows us there’s room to grow.”

Similarly, Estonia’s postal representative, Sven Kukumelk from Omniva, noted the importance of cross-country learning. “I was pleasantly surprised by the infrastructure in Jersey—it felt very familiar,” he said. “We use robots and automation in Estonia, so it’s been valuable to share those innovations.”

Thorhildur Helgadottir of Iceland Post echoed the sentiment, explaining that while mail volumes—particularly letters—are declining, parcel delivery is becoming a lifeline for many postal services.“We’ve seen a 93% drop in letter volumes in recent years, which has been painful,” she said. “But our parcel business is growing, and we’re sharing that progress with others.”

The forum was established by Derek Osborn, who saw a gap in support for smaller postal services. “There are plenty of global conferences for the big players, but small posts were often left out of the conversation,” Osborn explained. “This forum helps level the playing field.”

Jersey Post’s own Tom Wasilewski helped bring the event to the island and opened with remarks on strategy and innovation.“It’s reassuring to hear that the challenges we’re tackling here aren’t unique,” he said. “Being part of the global postal community means we must stay connected and avoid the trap of insularity.”

As global mail trends shift and demand for traditional postal services wanes, events like this highlight the shared need for adaptability, collaboration, and reinvention among smaller postal operators.