I have heard about another Victorian newsagency losing money from a Universal Magazines title.
This newsagent’s story is to do with the reissue of Contemporary Home Design Annual. Vol.7 No 1: On the initial issue, the store sold 40% of the stock. This was early 2008. The reissue is bagged with a back issue – Vol 6 No3 which was initially issued July 07. The original of this issue sold 35% of allocation in this newsagency. The back issue was returned from a newsagent in Central West NSW.
Achieving a 35-40% sell through, maintained over two years, represents oversupply. Based on a $3.00 cost per bundle returned, this business is paying $6-$9 to return remaining copies on each issue – only to have the returned product sent back again in a double pack. What a waste of fuel and an abuse of the returns funded by newsagents.
Besides the cash-flow, labour and real-estate impost on newsagents, there is a huge cost to the environment of this practice. Magazines being returned burn fuel. When they come back they are in plastic bags and sent burning more fuel. There is no good news for the environment in this story.
On the free copy with a current issue practice, advertisers in Universal Magazines titles need to ask what numbers are used for sales data given the reissue policy. I would have thought that you could not reasonably count the free copy of an old issue sent with the current issue as sold stock.
Instead of paying their lawyers to chase me and this blog, Universal Magazines could have achieved more by talking directly with everyday newsagents.
Have a look at there website Mark. They state that they recycle their magazines so they are “Green”. Bullshit. It’s called redistribution, I’ve got a magazine in my store at the moment that has travelled 2000 kms to sit on my shelf and look pretty – it ain’t gonna sell still.
I hope they continue to waste their money on lawyers.