Ribbon Cut for Acton's Bubble Tea Post Office

Local MP Rupa Huq joined by her sister Konnie at official launch

The Huq sisters do the honours for the new Post Office

August 21, 2025

Acton’s long-awaited Post Office has officially opened its doors, marking the return of vital services to the town centre for the first time since the closure of its Crown branch in 2018. The new facility which has been operating since last month, co-located within a Chatime bubble tea café on Acton High Street, was launched this Tuesday (19 August)in a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by local MP Dr Rupa Huq and her sister, TV presenter and children’s author Konnie Huq.

The Post Office has been operating since July, but postmaster Hamid Hamid delayed the formal launch until he had completed training. Open seven days a week, it offers extended hours—8am to 8pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm Saturdays, and 11am to 5pm Sundays—making it one of the most accessible branches in the area.

Hamid, who is new to both café management and postal services, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “I’m feeling many things. First of all, I’d like to get to know more of the people in the local area. They are all very friendly, and I’m looking forward to serving the community, growing this business, and developing a good understanding of what people need.”

The new branch offers a wide range of services including parcel dispatch and collection, recorded deliveries, banking, cash deposits, bill payments, mobile top-ups, stamps, and courier options such as Evri and DPD. For many residents of Chiswick—whose own Post Office closed in June—this will now be the nearest alternative.

Dr Rupa Huq, who campaigned against the closure of Acton’s Crown Post Office in 2018, described the launch as a bittersweet milestone. “The contrast between what we had and what we have is stark,” she said. “That Crown branch by Morrisons had extensive floorspace and full services. We protested its closure, and the then-CEO Paul Vennells promised ‘Acton will have a Post Office.’ It’s taken seven years, but finally central Acton has one again.”

She acknowledged the shift in strategy, with Post Offices increasingly co-located within retail outlets like WHSmith in Ealing or, in this case, a bubble tea café. “Given how crazy youth are for bubble tea, it’s a great pairing,” she added. “I know we’re moving over to AI and digital, but many services—like holiday money or precise stamp quantities—still require face-to-face interaction. We’re also facing a loneliness epidemic, and this facility offers a chance for real human contact.”

The Post Office counter in the bubble tea cafe

The launch comes amid ongoing fallout from the Horizon scandal, which saw hundreds of postmasters wrongfully convicted due to faulty accounting software. Among those attending was Varchas Patel, whose father Vipin Patel ran Acton’s Crown Post Office in the 1980s and 1990s before being wrongfully prosecuted for a £35,000 “phantom shortfall.” Varchas, now a campaign spokesperson, said: “The government isn’t doing enough. My family lost everything—our home, our business, our health. We were vilified and threatened. But I have fond memories of Acton’s old Post Office, and I’m here because the Post Office still plays an essential role in every community.”

Dr Huq echoed the need for institutional reform. “The Post Office is now taken as a byword for scandal. We have to rebuild trust. It’s a well-known British institution, and it’s going to take some time—hopefully this will help.”

Despite the downsizing and co-location model, she expressed optimism for the new venture. “This is great to see a new business opening when we hear of so many things closing and the death of the high street. With Chiswick’s branch gone, this is the nearest alternative. Hamid deserves a long career of great success.”