Police are appealing for public assistance following an attempted armed robbery at a postal outlet in West Footscray earlier this month.

A man entered the store on Sunshine Road around 5pm on Thursday 3 April.

Holding a knife and a plastic bag, he approached the store manager and made a demand for cash.

The staff member has refused and activated an alarm.

The man then left the store without any money and ran east towards Aliwal Street near the Tottenham Railway Station.

No one was injured during the incident and detectives from Altona North Embona Taskforce are now investigating.

The man is described as being between 20-30 years of age and perceived to be of Caucasian appearance with short light brown hair.

He has scabs on his cheeks and chin and red marks where it looked like he had picked or scratched his face.

At the time of the incident he was wearing a black hooded jumper with a white Everlast logo and dark coloured pants.

Investigators have released CCTV images of a man they wish to speak to in relation to the incident.