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Some suppliers have themselves to blame when newsagents stop offering their product

IMG_9173 (2)Reflex copy paper is regularly advertised as a brand consumers can trust yet in Coles this week you can see it discounted to below wholesale at $3.49. While the discounting may suit the Coles price positioning strategy, it does not respect the brand nor the retailers who respect the brand.

Major brands that allow their products to be discounted as Coles has done this week with Reflex risk losing the interest and support of independent and small business retailers.

I want to stock brands in my newsagency that respect themselves and their retail partners, brands that value long term relationships.

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  1. shauns

    Looks like I am off to coles

    3 likes

  2. Mark Fletcher

    It’s crazy isn’t it Shaun.

    0 likes

  3. shauns

    Crazy it is . Its coming up to back to school time so I think your mad to not buy them at that price . last time coles had them that cheap I was able to buy a pallet load . Unfortunately I havnt purchased reams of paper from GNS for years due to the to big guys basically giving it away .

    0 likes

  4. Mark Fletcher

    I got a deal via Woolworths for Xerox super white at $3.49 when the usual price is $5.00 and more. Bought half a pallet delivered free.

    1 likes

  5. shauns

    Funny thing about woollies for years they have never allowed bulk purchases to customers they know will onsell it (well they didn’t here) a few weeks ago the manager came to see me and said purchase what ever you want .

    1 likes

  6. BrettS

    And we wonder why they keep getting deals.

    1 likes

  7. shauns

    Bretts , we are in business to make money , to me they at times are just another supplier, its like having a warehouse next door to me .

    0 likes

  8. BrettS

    That’s the unique point about owning your own business we can all be Kings in our own castle.
    Bad point is it dilutes our power base.

    I would never view them as another supplier. I do view them as my competition though more so then any other business to me.

    No matter what the price point I would still buy all
    my stationery thats 100% of it through GNS.
    I also have some concerns with out of stocks from GNS.

    I still would never buy from another stationery seller.

    Should say I like making money to 😀

    3 likes

  9. Peter B

    Bretts, if another suppliers permanent price is 20% or more cheaper on a full range of a branded product than where you get your stationery from, why wouldn’t you get your supplies there?
    On another blog post yesterday the GNS CEO I think it was posted that he is happy to approach any business(a post office in that blog) to gain business. That coud be next door, across the road, even your stiffest competitor, even if you are a shareholder of GNS.
    He said himself there is no loyalty in business.
    Profits are what count now if you want to remain in business, not loyalty.

    5 likes

  10. Alex Stewart

    Please don’t misquote me Peter B.

    Loyalty is not expected it it earned.

    For many years this business had an absolute expectation of loyalty from its customers, yet were still not providing what customers needed let alone what they asked for. That’s all fine until customers started voting with their feet. I get that.

    My comments were purely stating commercial fact.

    Our business via Newsagents has been declining for several years, Either through organic decline, though Newsagents who felt that we were not treating them like they wanted to be treated, or competitive activity based on taking our market share or with new categories or products that GNS wasn’t offering – for whatever reasons.

    Commercial decline with reduced costs only works to a point. It was very a much a case of having to: “Sell more to our existing customers, or find new customers”

    Given our existing customers were not providing growth, and I agree GNS was not providing the full extent of solutions necessary for various reasons, we had to find new customers.

    We have invested a hell of a lot of resources to position ourselves as better suppliers and as I keep saying we are always happy to talk about how we can continue to improve. My comments stated that for as long as our customers choose to support our competitors, even cherry picking fast moving lines, our ability to address your issues – whether real or perceived – becomes harder and harder.

    Hopefully my meeting today with “Subaru” will provide a way forward and clear up some degree of confusion that existed upon which conclusions were made.

    Our commitment to Newsagents remains and in fact increases. We have just launched a new product category that is exclusive to Newsagents, and we are about to launch a retail training program that will enable our customers to be overall better retailers. Even if you are the best retailer this would still be relevant.

    So for the sake of clarity, we are only as good as what we do. We listen, we absorb, and we try to improve. Unfortunately no matter what we do will never please everyone – either actual or perceived.

    We just this morning caught a Newsagent in our Sydney Cash and Carry stealing from us by hiding product in a box and then resealing it with tape – probably also taken from the shelf. How do you propose we deal with this? I can tell you that this customer will no longer be welcome in our building that’s for sure.

    2 likes

  11. Dean

    Alex, I hope you reported the thief to the police

    3 likes

  12. Chris

    Can I ask what the relevance of 1 newsagent being caught stealing from GNS has to do with this?

    2 likes

  13. shauns

    Chris I was thinking the same thing

    0 likes

  14. eric

    It means more price increase, since there are stock loses

    0 likes

  15. John Kirkham

    It means they have nothing to add.

    3 likes

  16. Alex Stewart

    Chris you’re right however it was somewhat ironic that at the same time I was writing to my previous post justifying and validating GNS and how we are committed to the Newsagent Channel, that a Newsagent is caught allegedly stealing from us. My frustration and dissatisfaction drove me making this comment more than anything.

    Dean we couldn’t report to the Police as this was discovered at checkout – not outside.

    Eric – this is totally incorrect! Supplier Price increases and inflation drive GNS price increases – not theft!

    John #15. Please clarify what your statement means. What do you mean we having nothing to add and why would you make this statement please?

    2 likes

  17. eric

    Alex,I like the changes in bringing in new stocks to GNS, please bring in more things that are out of tradition.

    1 likes

  18. Paul

    Good on you Alex for commenting on here All too often we want people higher up the chain (which ever chain) to comment and you do and you get knocked.I suppose we can only blame ourselves or those above when people don’t

    4 likes

  19. subaru

    Some follow up from Mondays meeting.

    I had a very positive meeting with Alex and 3 other members of his senior team. We were together in a meeting room for 3 hours in total.

    Data, Out of Stocks, Officesmart, and many other smaller issues were openly discussed, and we look forward to satisfactory outcomes to many of the problems.

    We were asked to meet again in a month or so to follow up. I asked if a meeting at my shop was possible so that we could show them how we operate as Newsagents AND Officesmart Stationers. And demonstrate any issues that we may still have at the time (if at all). This was enthusiastically agreed to by Alex and team.

    Thanks for a big chunk of your time Alex and team. I look forward to sharing the knowledge and working with you on solutions.

    5 likes

  20. Peter

    Subrau Onya son will reply tomorrow sobber. Mind you I would still like Pilo Tape to be right and not reversed with barcodes as is presently the case. In fact this makes a simple test for Alex, FIX IT.

    0 likes

  21. subaru

    Peter, I hadn’t noticed the reversed barcodes on pilotape.
    What I had noticed was that the tin barcode is how they expect us to sell them – well at least in the officesmart catalogue…

    Items like this were part of the discussion. The data sells them to us as a pack of 1, with the description saying pk6 or 8 or whatever.

    We want to sell them as a single roll of tape – as most people want them
    Then the receipt that the customer sees still has the pack 6 in the description regardless of if they buy 1 or 6.

    Is this what you are refering to Peter?

    0 likes

  22. Peter

    Subaru on Invoice S556074 dated 28/8 I got 3 tins pilotape 26006. It was shown in the Electronic Invoice as 3 Items using the inner barcode. Result delete entry and re arrive as 24 items on the inner barcode. I brought this cash and carry (something I have only done once before usually using delivery). How is it they scan it the register with only the outer barcode visible then send it out with am item count of 1 on the Inner Barcode (should be 8). I have tried to set myself up to sell by the individual roll or by the tin. Each time I receive pilotape (about 5 different items) I have to delete and reenter it correctly. A pain in the arse and if GNS got it right I would save a considerable amount of time on getting their invoices right for my POS system.

    0 likes

  23. Paul Middleton (GNS)

    Hi Peter,

    GNS has always sold product #26006 as a ‘tin of 8’ with the expectation that our customers will do the same and not sell it as individual rolls. It is included in the OFFICEsmart catalogue as such, priced accordingly, and our data is also set up to reflect this, including in the product description to remove any doubt as to the intended retail unit.

    This may not be convenient for you or Subaru, or for many other customers who want to split the tin, but changing the description and data to suit your needs will upset the many other customers who do sell it this way – it is unfortunately not a case of simply ‘fixing the data’. The data is correct, it’s just not in line with your preferred unit of sale.

    In order to resolve this issue once and for all, which we are very keen to do, we have discussed the possibility of sourcing this product in both the tin and a new ‘wholesale pack’ with the supplier, which will be designed specifically to be split into individual rolls. The details are yet to be confirmed, but we’re hoping that within the next few months, we’ll be able to supply this product under two separate SKUs. Each of these will be provided with correct data, both in the DDO and in the promotional POS files, to support the preferred unit of measure.

    As you know, this is just one small group of products, so please report any others you come across that you’d like me to address using the new ‘Report Issue’ button on the GNS Online website product detail page, which are sent directly to me for resolution.

    4 likes

  24. Peter

    Paul
    I see you agree that was item was sent on the inner bar code with a count of one per tin. I according to your view then use the data sent to price it a full tin sale on the Inner bar code. If I was to do this when I sell the Tin I have to open remove one of the rolls scan it the put it back in the tin before resealing it and completing the sale. I complete and utter farce.

    This does also not allow single roll sales easily. These single roll sales are a large portion of Pilotape sold.

    0 likes

  25. Dean

    Couldn’t you just have 2 barcodes – 1 for a tin of 8 with the barcode on the tin, and 1 for a single roll with the barcode on the pack. I think Tower can be configured to cope with the 2 product codes linked through a carton pack so ordering, product descriptions and SOH aren’t messed up, and you can sell a tin however you want.

    0 likes

  26. Peter

    Dean
    Yes, Pilotape 26006 does have 2 barcodes as you describe.
    Yes Tower can handle the two barcodes as an individual and a pack and allow you to price it.

    In my view this item it best brought in to the POS under the Number of Tins on the Outer barcode. The inner will also be offered for price setting after the tin (outer barcode). Sending the Pilotape tape Data on the Inner barcode with an item count of 1 does not allow this to happen. Leaving it as Paul suggests means It rings up as a tin of 1 on the inner barcode which is accessed to scan for sale by opening the tin getting out one roll and scaning it before returning it to the Tin and sealing the tin again.

    0 likes

  27. subaru

    Dean and Peter, my comments to keep this one alive.

    I believe that if the item is sold as a tin, the qty data should be of the smallest sale-able value. As in tin of 8, not a tin of 1
    If GNS expect us to sell it as a tin it should be buy 8, sell 8….not buy 1 sell 1.
    This way we could add the single barcode item within OUR system so we buy as 8 and sell as EITHER 8 (tin) or 1 (single item)

    The problem with the way it is currently done is that any reports to do with stock on hand, profit margin and so on are GREATLY affected when the data is investigated.

    0 likes

  28. subaru

    There is now a button on each item on the GNS website that says “report issue”

    If you have any issues with an item, either due to out of stock, or any form of data problem you notice, use the button to report the issue.

    The more people that report relevant issues, the faster the problems are resolved.

    I just imported the data from an order we picked and had about a dozen issues where barcodes didn’t import correctly. Mostly because there were no inner barcodes listed for the item, only an outer.

    So, working between the invoicing screen of my POS system, and the GNS website, each problem item was reported with comments to get these issues resolved.

    Yes it took some extra time to complete the job, but the end result will be better for everybody if we all take the time to help them fix these problems

    2 likes

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