The Federal Government refuses to consider that Australia Post has an unfair advantage over independent small retailers like newsagents in the stationery space. The unfair advantage was no more evident than on last night’s ABC-TV Evening News in Brisbane. There was a story about their Driving Through the Years stamps. Australia Post is able to get national TV coverage for their stamp launch and a free kick for their retail outlets which sell the special edition stamps.
I’d have to front nude day or some other stunt in my newsagency to get similar TV coverage.
The 865 Government owned Australia Post shops have given over more than 80% of their floor space to non postage product, yet they are able to get their brand on national TV free of charge because the government protects them through their stamp and postal service monopoly.
Wake up people! Australia Post is hurting independently owned small businesses like newsagencies. They use the brand I as a taxpayer helped them achieve to now compete with me. They can sustain losses in stationery because of their stamp business. I don’t have that luxury. Their actions will cause some of these small businesses to close. The losses incurred will be blood on the hands of Mr Horward, Ms Coonan and their colleagues. They have been told about the aggression of Australia Post yet the ignore the facts.
Mr Beasley and the Opposoition could do well to focus some of their attention on this. Small business is a big consitiuency and the government, through its Australia Post inaction, makes a mockery of its own Small Business ‘policy’.
If we were able to get the stamp product/s at a reasonable cost price it would be a value added product to keep and not money tied up getting no return.
What is cost price though? as it supposedly goes to pay for wages for government workers to deliver mail. One model to use would be similar to the Newspaper commission, 20-25%.
It is frustrating that there is no real money in carrying stamps, most small business’s carry them for customer service purposes only.
Australia Post are getting the cake & eating it too while disadvantaging small business’s by being anti competitive with there core products. For eg: I cannot ring up a stamp distributor to order stamps to sell & make money on them.
As a very small business I will not carry stamps until I can get a commission from them, if only every small business did the same, would it make a difference?
Of course Australia post will be sold of like telstra one thinks, the retail part of it certainly will be franchised and is being franchised now. It is just retail building at the moment to ensure it can come close to being competative when it finally goes from government ownership.
I am sure you have heard Mr Howard only recently saying Government should not be in the business of running business because they are not good at it.
Derek,
The government controls the postal service and its network of 865 retail outlets which leeches off the Post brand to more easily sell against businesses like newsagents. If we were offered stamps for a fair commission I would be less concerned.
Every day the current situation remains is another day of loss for small business.
Mark
Mark; I agree it would be less of a concern if they opened up the monopoly they have now and pay a fair commission.
How can this unfair situation in regards to say Stamps be addressed for example?
This has really irked me since I have been in my micro small business, a monopoly on stamps while they utilise the rest of their shop space to stock up with retail goods that take consumers away from newsagents and other similar outlets.
Competition is a fact and has been around since Day 2- its the monopoly that is wrong, Australia post is creating precedent and I hope to find some information that may prove it is trading in a uncompetative way, government owned or not.
If imformation comes to light, I’ll share it here along with the ACCC- yawn!