92 people voted in the poll about sub agents. 42 said NO, 32 said YES and 18 said as a RESTRICTED MEMBER.
Newsagents who feel strongly either way on this ought to put their thoughts to their associations as I know this is a topic being discussed at the moment. Associations cannot reflect the will of their members unless they are told what members want.
I ran the poll for two reasons:
- Because I have heard of a push in one association to actively recruit sub agents.
- Because in a strict sense my two directly owned newsagencies are sub agents. We do not deliver newspapers nor do we have direct newspaper accounts. This makes us, in the eyes of some old school newsagents, sub agents.
Newsagents need to debate these issues as they go to the heart of what a newsagency may look like in the future.
So should a newsagent be classed as a designated shops selling newspapers, magazines, cards, stationary as their main products?
A sub should be a milkbar, serivice station, 7eleven, supermarket?
I hate being called a “Sub” for the fact that I out perform some of the “newsagents” in my area and match them in other ways.
Any thoughts of a better classification?
yes i think they should be class as a newsagent if you are selling all of those items listed as main products but if you main product is groceries then you should be classifed as a subagent
just my thoughts
Defining a newsagent by four major departments (cards,stationery, magazines and newspapers) is simply too narrow.
The definition needs to be flexible and foresighted enough to allow for a changing industry.
Mag Nation for example would not fall under the four department definition. They are not a traditional newsagent, but one of their core products is magazines. Is a newsagent association not the best indstry body to represent them in this category?
Not all newsagents have shops, or sell cards and stationary. Simply put the purpose of industry representation is to represent Agents who have direct accounts and contact with publishers. Sub-agents are supplied by agents, and as such are still represented.