2014 will be a disruptive year for some newsagency suppliers. I expect we will see some long-term suppliers close or consolidate and some more recent suppliers withdraw from our channel or close altogether.
Just as suppliers do due-diligence on new accounts they open with newsagents, newsagents should do due diligence on suppliers – especially suppliers of products into which you need to invest capital, space and labour to launch in your newsagency.
It can be disrupting to a retail business if we stock a line of products or a service, investing in launching this to our customers – only to find it ceases to be available because of the closure of a supplier or the takeover of their business by a company that does not want to serve through our channel.
While I am not writing this post with a specific story of closure or merger in mind, I am aware of rumours of several businesses in play. As with any purchase you make – a deal that appears to be too good to be true is probably the deal to be most wary of.
Critical mass is what matters to newsagents and to suppliers of newsagents. If we’re smart, there is strength in numbers.