Here is a photo that a Tatts representative posted to its private Facebook group for retailers showing how one business is promoting St Patricks Day products. In a comment, a Tatts person on the page complimented the look of the business.
I am told by Tatts agents that this photo shows breaches of what Tatts permits.
Now, before the folks at Nextra call their lawyers about this post, I think what the store is doing looks okay. My issue is with Tatts and their promotion of a display that appears to be outside what it says to others is acceptable.
We just had our inspection and were marked down on our report card for much less then this. I am confused if we are supposed to be applauded like i am by my rep for running a good looking business or shamed by Tatts head office for running a good looking business….
I would like to see the whole counter area as if this is a long counter it wold be OK
I am also fascinated by what a Chemist or IGA that has Tatts can have compared to what is required for me.
It would improve Tatts performance if they focused more on their high performing agents and what they are doing to succeed and trying to help low performing agents achieve the same level of success.
I understand there needs to be a level of compliance but it needs to be consistent and fair.
This whole inspection process is a disgrace! I find it amazing that Tatts actually thinks they will get a better performing agent by bullying them this way.
Do your suppliers or employees work better for your business if you are aggressive or if you create a positive relationship and environment?
Some of the businesses we deal with have such an old school mentality concerning their operation it is an embarrassing.
How often are people being “surveyed”? We just had the second one in under 4 months.
ditto here..
We were told by the Tatts auditor that it will be about every 3 to 4 months. And we have had two so far, about 4 months apart. (I didn’t sign up for this s…)
Hi Chris, your last paragraph reflects my own feelings. Every time I think of Tatts this scene from Charles Dicken’s, “Hard Times”, written in 1854, comes to mind.
‘Girl number twenty,’ said Mr. Gradgrind, squarely pointing with his square forefinger,
‘I don’t know that girl. Who is that girl?’
‘Sissy Jupe, sir,’ explained number twenty, blushing, standing up, and curtseying.
‘Sissy is not a name,’ said Mr. Gradgrind. ‘Don’t call yourself
Sissy. Call yourself Cecilia.’
‘It’s father as calls me Sissy, sir,’ returned the young girl in a trembling voice, and with
another curtsey.
‘Then he has no business to do it,’ said Mr. Gradgrind. ‘Tell him he mustn’t. Cecilia
Jupe. Let me see. What is your father?’
‘He belongs to the horse-riding, if you please, sir.’
Mr. Gradgrind frowned, and waved off the objectionable calling with his hand.
‘We don’t want to know anything about that, here. You mustn’t tell us about that, here.
Your father breaks horses, don’t he?’
‘If you please, sir, when they can get any to break, they do break horses in the ring, sir.’
‘You mustn’t tell us about the ring, here. Very well, then. Describe your father as a
horsebreaker. He doctors sick horses, I dare say?’
‘Oh yes, sir.’
‘Very well, then. He is a veterinary surgeon, a farrier, and horsebreaker. Give me your
definition of a horse.’
So Newsagent number ###, has a reincarnated Mr Gradgrind been recruited by Tatts?
I’ve had one audit so far that i managed to pass.
That is unless they came in after i had fallen asleep while reading that last comment. (sorry Henry 🙂
Many businesses/franchises have regular audits to maintain uniformity. Its worth noting that i didn’t feel threatened or bullied by the auditor at all. She was extremely polite, happily waited whilst i was serving other customers and even waited for me to refill an ISI row that had just sold out (whilst she was present) before taking photos.
Did anyone else have a different experience?
We certainly did Bob, ours turned up first thing in the morning on the Friday after Aus day holiday. We were absolutely slammed. Failed us before she even got in the door because the powerball poster hadn’t been changed yet. Told me I had no choice but to leave the counter for 40 mins to answer ridiculous questions. Started taking photos of my POS computers and confectionery displays until she was told to stop doing that, then took about 100 photos of our scratchie dispenser when it was full, waited for a gap to appear then took another photo and failed us on that too. Naturally I was not impressed.
Our last one was good, in and out minimal disruption. First though was another story, one hour after we opened and we had just taken over. Staff hadn’t been trained on responsible play so we failed that but tatts understood and this time staff passed easy because we trained them. Responsible play is the key part of the survey because their license depends on it, display stuff is an internal matter and it seems to be applied unevenly across agents. It seems like they come down harder on the smaller agents for image breaches.
Personally I don’t know how smaller agents can afford the new image, especially regional ones with added costs of travel and accommodation for approved installers. Maybe they want to force some to close and force people online.
Don’t be sorry Bob, Dicken’s disappointment will be dissipated by knowing billions of readers over a couple of centuries – who managed to stay awake for a couple hundred words, think it is one of the best passages in English literature. It strikes a chord when they stumble on the mindless imposition of power on the relatively weak.
This isn’t about the rep, They are subject to the same stupidity as we are. The stupidity is that the assessment is based on negative factors and not at all on positive factors: The best possible outcome is no breach. If the positive things you do, those things from which give you the most satisfaction, go unrecognised, you will put your imagination and effort elsewhere and limit yourself to just obeying Tatts rules.
I have no problem with audits. I want my business to be 100% compliant. It is one thing that sets me apart from the amateurs at the new On The Run next door, and why my ranking is the same as this time last year even with a new competitor.
May be different in each state, but in SA we are given a 30 minute grace period from our opening time to have all POS updated. Takes no more than 2 minutes to swap out jackpot posters.
I have found SA Lotteries management responsive when an audit raises a compliance issue, as it has twice when external auditor has made a mistake. A simple email has resolved the error.
We don’t know what day an audit will be, but we are informed a few weeks in advance. I take that as an opportunity to print out the compliance checklist, wander around with pen and tick off everything to make sure we haven’t missed anything. I see that as a routine task like tidying magazines and cards, changing around gift displays, etc.
David I wouldn’t class OTR as amatures they have been able to negotiate a better agreement with Tatts compared to Newsagents. Our Lotteries ranking is not an accurate guide as to how well our sales are going. The only accurate measure is YTD sales compared to the previous year.
David, don’t underestimate the OTR business. They are given concessions by Tatts that given them advantages over you. Before their door is open they are ahead.
When you tell your audit inspector where to go! #joyments!
The auditors are not the enemy they have a list of questions and are instructed where to take photos ,according to our Tatts auditor they have no info as to what areas the breaches will come from.
The audits are then reviewed by Tatts staff who determine if breach notices are required.
I have no problem with audits , the issue here is Tatts are NOT treating all retailers equally