Retail Newsagent magazine in the UK has a feature this month on newsagencies in Australia. Steven Denham covers this at his Village Counter Talk Blog. Jarryd Moore and I have been covered by the journalists who put the article together.
It is good to see the UK interest in the newsagency model here. The channel in each country can learn from the other.
I have a meeting in a few weeks with a company who are commissioned by the government to approve grants for businesses wanting to improve to get more profit (hence pay more tax).
I’m really not after a grant but I will be bringing up deregulation, fixed prices, set commission etc. I think they should be looking into how successful the deregulation was and how viable newsagents are now compared to before with our future in interest.
I think little changes like maybe letting newsagents be the only place to buy monthly magazines and letting servos, supermarkets only allowed to sell weeklies.
I think such a little change like you have mentioned about monthly magazines would make a huge difference in sales .
you guys still dont get that you operate in an open and competive market and thinking that you have some right over the sale of newspapers and magazines is the reason why people will turn their back on your business
Why would it make them turn away i don’t get what you are saying scott.
Scott, If people think the market is open and competitive then they have not tried to go up against the big boys in a while. Try opening a small supermarket anywhere near a coles or woolworths or an independent servo near a Caltex or shell. The martket is controlled by big business and is near closed to all bar them.
That said newsagents need to get over what happened in the late 90’s and understand that mags and newspapers are never going to be the same again, we need to find new unchallenged income streams, but unlike before when we get them we need to protect them by acting as an industry not a group of mum and dad retailers. UK merchants were not happy with the low rates offered by Vodaphone so there is a boycott of that company. We need to do the same.
“If people think the market is open and competitive then they have not tried to go up against the big boys in a while. Try opening a small supermarket anywhere near a coles or woolworths or an independent servo near a Caltex or shell. The martket is controlled by big business and is near closed to all bar them.”
This is the definition of a open market. An open market doesn’t mean it should be easy for the small guy.
Forget about being easy the bottle shop next to me buys his products from dan murphy (woolworths) becasue it is cheaper than buying from the suppliers how on earth can you compete against that ,customer service can only go so far then the dollar starts talking . Does that sound competitive to you ??
My point is that the you will not be able to open next to these big retailers, whole market is not open to competition only the parts that big retailers do not want. Australia post argue competition however they have exclusive rights to postage, Coles/Wollies argue competition however shopping center leases exclude competition within for a fixed period.
Scott, I’ve cancelled the meeting. Disregard what I said.