Colin and Denise Batchelor bought the post office in Marks Point (which doubles as a cafe) about two years ago and say it is the best move they have ever made.

They live in a house at the rear of the post office and have two sons and three grandchildren.

The Batchelors owned a convenience store in Mount Hutton for several years and then ‘‘rang the bell’’ for an ice-cream delivery service for four years before setting their sights on picturesque Marks Point and its village atmosphere.

‘‘The previous owners ran a successful coffee shop and post office, and we’re slowly trying to build it up again,’’ Colin says.

‘‘We want to expand the cafe and include more outside seating, hopefully by the end of this year. It’s really nice outside in the afternoon sun, and in the morning too, actually. It’s beautiful.’’

Denise says neither she nor Colin are great cooks but what they do, they do well. Or so their customers tell them.

‘‘We make sandwiches and melts, coffee, cake and cookies, and they’re popular, and we’d eventually like to branch out to lasagne and quiche as well,’’ she says.

Denise says the post office is unique for reasons other than the cafe: she and Colin actually own it, and they always, always, put the customer first.

‘‘Lots of people don’t know how to treat customers, and good customer service makes a difference. Customers can tell us things and they know it won’t go any further. It will stay in confidence.

‘‘Also, we own the post office. It’s ours, it’s not owned by Australia Post. We’re not just employees, we have a vested interest in the business.

‘‘We’ve had people from other suburbs come out of their way to use our post office, so we must be doing something right. At least we hope we are,’’ she laughs.

I can vouch for that. I live a few suburbs away from the Batchelors but will postpone sending a parcel or a letter until I visit my parents in Marks Point.

The Batchelors’ post office is also unique in that diners have the opportunity to choose from a selection of games, which they can play alone or with a partner, while they wait for a cuppa.

‘‘Denise and I have a big interest in games,’’ Colin says.

‘‘We like sitting opposite one another of an evening, playing the games. We love the strategy involved and the opportunity to have a chat, rather than sitting watching advertisements on the television.

‘‘We hope to run games nights in the cafe, starting in the next month or two.’’

Colin, who sells games and other items in the store, says post offices have been forced to promote the retail side of their business in recent years to keep up with changing trends.

‘‘They’ve had to, mainly because of the internet. The number of letters being sent is decreasing, as are the number of bill payments made in person. But identity services, and the number of parcels being sent, are actually growing.

‘‘Look, we’re never going to be millionaires out of this, but we love it.

‘‘The best part of my job is the customers. Denise and I get a lot of joy out of having a chat with people. If they leave happy, we’re happy.

‘‘The first three months here were very scary. It was very quiet and we thought we’d done the wrong thing. But people have now taken us under their wing, which is nice.’’

Says Denise: ‘‘We absolutely love it here, and the plan is to stay until we retire.’’

Let’s hope they won’t be doing that any time soon.

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