Here’s what an instant lottery ticket dispensing unit looks like at the checkout counter of Tesco supermarkets in the UK. I expect that it’s this type of unit which Intralot would have placed at checkouts of Coles and Safeway if they will the instant ticket licence in Victoria.
Newsagents who do not want to see these units at supermarket checkout counters in Australia need to act now. The petition re the move by Greek company Intralot to setup in Victoria and partner with supermarkets is still live here. You have nothing to lose by letting your elected representatives know how you feel now.
does tesco’s have lottery-free checkout queues in the same way that there are confectionery-free lanes here?
I wonder what the commission on the instant lottery tickets is versus grocery items, I suspect the lottery tickets would be more profitable.
In the Tesco stores I’ve been to, the lottery tickets are only sold at a separate counter which is also the outlet for tobacco products. In some stores this also doubles as a checkout for people with only one or two items (yes, maybe just a newspaper), but not in all. I’ve also been to a couple of stores where this counter also handles film develop and print.
When the UK Lottery was launched (about ten years ago) the standard commision for all retailers was 5%. I don’t know if that’s still the case.
Fred, let me assure you … lottery tickets are not more profitable than grocery items. The GP on grocery items is far greater than that of lottery tickets.
It appears to me that Tesco is using these mainly as an impluse buy offer. I would also suspect that the big supermarkets here would be looking to do the same. They are trying to offer their customers a product in order to gain sales through impulse buying, but also in order to give consumers a reason NOT to go their newsagent. By keeping consumers away from other stores, supermarkets can gain a biger share of consumer spending.
The impact of loosing instant lotteries to supermarkets means not only decreased sales but a loss in customer numbers and a decreased basket size. Furthermore there is the precedent it sets for futher transitions of lottery products into supermarkets and the loss of lottery branding and its association, in the mind of consumers, with newsagencies. It may be seen that a move to allow instant lotteries in the supermarket chains could also be, in part, a negative for Intralot.
Mark,
In Queensland, similar dispensers are already available and are used in some petrol stations and IGA supermarkets which double as a newsagency. They sit very neatly either infront or beside the register and hold 8 or so instants.
Damian that’s interesting. I have not seen them. I don;t mind IGA as much as I mind Coles and Woolworths.
Although i am biased, I dont mind them being in independant supermarkets either. The majority of them are small business owners working hard in a tough industry just like newsagents. I should clarify when i refer to supermarkets in my previous post i am refering only to the chains. What we dont need is Woolworths and Coles leveraging their power and taking lottery products away from small business.
I’m sure that the small town newsagents do have a problem with the comment by Jarryd
(I don’t mind them being in independent supermarkets either. The majority of them are small business owners working hard in a tough industry just like newsagents.)
Some of theses independents want to take on the newsagents and sell the top line magazines and news papers. So leave the scratches and lotto where it is please.
Clem
I wonder if supermarkets have factored in the time wasted on checking instant tickets not just selling them, in our newsagency over 75% of our time to do with lotto and scratchies is checking old tickets, people have become more demanding and the games have become more complicated that we have to double check every ticket, this holds up sales as customers demand the tickets gets scanned. Supermarkets are use to quick sales without the delays, they cannot afford lotto revenue when you weigh up the labour involved for the commission you get. They see the revenue stream and not the time needed to offer the full service, they will learn as we have learned that even though lotto is a great traffic builder it is also a great time killer.
Clem, we are a small town newsagent. Interestingly enough, we also own an independant supermarket. Around 9 months ago, we moved the newsagency into the supermarket to take advantage of reduced rent and economies of scale in services, wages, etc, as well as leveraging sigificant foot traffic.
We have actually had the lottery agency in the supermarket before the newsagency went in there. The agency was taken from the newsagent and moved into the supermarket before we acquired either, and from what we know this was done because of size restrictions, customer traffic and problems with the previous owners. It was infact the newsagent that had only a scratchie dispensor.
Before acquiring the newsagency we sold papers in the supermarket. And with the newsagency now, one of our biggest subagents is another independant supermarket, to who we supply both newspapers and the top magazines.
Luke, i think you will find supermarkets will not scan every scratch ticket. As far as i am aware, agents with scratch tickets will check using the auxilary code.
I think you are also mistaken in thinking they dont know the labour required. They are most likely not looking at scratch tickets for pure revenue. They are also looking to offer their customers another product/service.