11/08/2012
The UK’s postal service, Royal Mail, is going for gold during the London 2012 Olympic Games to help mark the achievements of every Great Britain gold medallist.
Royal Mail is issuing commemorative Gold Medal stamps for every one that Great Britain wins at the Games, and is putting them on sale within 24 hours of the win at more than 500 Post Offices across the UK, and a further 4,700 Post Offices within days.
The stamps feature photographs of the Great British athlete or team in action either during their medal-winning final or during their trek towards the podium.
It is the first time Royal Mail has issued next-day stamps and the company is working around the clock to meet the logistical challenge.
Minutes after each gold medal win, photographs of the athlete’s winning moments are sent to Royal Mail. The company’s designers and editors have less than 30 minutes to select the best image, crop and check all facts. The image is then sent to six printers across the country who print the stamps overnight, ready for delivery by a fleet of almost 100 Royal Mail vehicles to Post Offices for sale that morning.
Royal Mail is also painting the country’s traditional red post boxes gold in the hometown of each winning athlete in the Olympic Games.
The Gold Medal stamps can be purchased from www.royalmail.com/goldmedalstamps. Videos, highlighting the next day process from design, print to delivery, can be viewed at www.youtube.com/royalmail.
