How does brand fraud work in Italy?

An Aperol Spritz for 10 Euros: Most tourist traps will hurt your wallet. This causes heartbreak.

He smacks his mouth too: a traveler in Italy buys a postcard and a stamp for Switzerland from the “Tabacchi” kiosk. He sits in a beautiful cafe in St. Mark’s Square, writes “Greetings from Venice” to his godchild and tosses the card into a red Italian mailbox.

Small print on stamp

Nothing else happens. The “Tabbacchi” employee sold a GPS stamp to the tourist, which only reaches the recipient when the stamped card is placed in a special yellow or orange GPS mailbox. Nobody told this to the tourist. Small letters can be written on stamps, but who reads small letters on stamps during the holidays?

The company responsible for the bad number is currently called the Globe Postal Network. A year ago, the Universal Postal Service was still scamming unsuspecting travelers for money. The company claims that regular stamped letters will be sent to the Italian Post Office when requested. Industry experts characterize business practices as questionable. Apparently, outlets selling GPS stamps from private provider get higher commission.

Then stop by app

Swiss Post is not affiliated with the Globe Postal Network. A postal spokesperson shows she understands the anger: “Whoever sends a postcard lays his head, heart, and hand.”

You must get a stamp from an Italian post office to ensure the holiday greetings get home. Or, using the Postcard Creator app, you can choose the slightly less romantic, but more efficient method: Cell phone photo of Doge’s Palace, type “Sunny greetings”, ok. Swiss Post will print and send the physical postcard.