Newsagents in tourist areas continue to struggle to get the magazines they could sell

A newsagent contacted me recently for help getting minors magazines for their tourism destination area. Their pleas to Gotch had gone unanswered.

Similar please from me on behalf of other newsagents over man y years have elicited words but little action from Gotch. The company appears incapable of getting magazines to some places where they would certainly sell.

I hope magazine publishers who want to sell more magazines are reading this.

Here is what the latest newsagent who contacted me wrote about the issue. here is their initial contact with me:

Hi Mark,

I just wanted to comment on the magazines an area that goes through the roof for us, is impossible to get Gordon and Gotch to send more mags. Both Exmouth and myself are struggling to get them to send more like a several years ago.

People on holiday read magazines at the beach, resort or caravan park….
Its frustrating because they are not listening.

I went back to them and offered to reach ut to Gotch myself for them. Here is their response, which was forwarded to Gotch:

Hi Mark,

It would be great to have another voice that could help them change there opinion of mags in holiday destinations

The issues:-

1) It takes 2 weeks to up any magazine – eg Womens Weekly and New Idea which are a weekly magazine.
2) They have reduced my selection of mags so that the variety is not there on the shelf – when people are on holidays they will buy 2-4 magazines at one purchase
3) The grey haired nomads are here and want there “That’s Life”, “Take 5”, which constantly run out because they only send 5
4) The grey haired nomads also want knitting and arts/craft books and we no longer get the variety they want.
5) After taking over from Network Services my mags were halved and I’ve been trying ever since to replenish the new stands I purchased to hold all the mags. Its terrible to see those same shelves half empty.

I asked them to continue with the same order from Network Services and told me I needed to go onto the website and order them, which was nearly impossible because they were not coming up on the website to start with. This was so much work for me to just get a few mags back and felt it was not my responsibility because they took over the business and I don’t get paid a lot for the mags anyway.

I did consider at one point cancelling everything but I am the only person in Coral Bay that sells mags….

I’ve had a look and my downturn in revenue has dropped 50-60%

Mainly I am frustrated and have given up because I am in the busy season now with 200+ customers coming through my doors every day.

Thanks for listening if nothing else happens.

So far, no word from Gotch.

I hope magazine publishers who want to sell more magazines are reading this.