Australian Newsagency Blog

Newsagents are taking action against Quadrant magazine and its shoddy treatment of these small business owners used for the retail and distribution of the magazine.  I have heard from many who are now refusing to carry Quadrant on their shelves.  Some are writing to the Chairman of the Quadrant Magazine Ltd Board of Directors - […]

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Check out how to use the Safari browser to read digital editions of magazines withough paying for a subscription.  I am publishing this information here to bring attention to the hack so it may be shutdown.

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Some newsagents sell the free items removed from unsold magazines before they return them. A colleague recently saw a stack of magazine branded notepads for sale in a newsagency. Another saw a selection of tote bags. I have seen dump bins at the front of the shop with a selection of these […]

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What I thought was a cordial discussion with our landlord about their new tax on us opening at 7am three days a week got legal yesterday when their company solicitor wrote pointing to where in our lease they have the right to charge this fee and the basis on which they can levy it retrospectively.  […]

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The government owned Australia Post shop opposite our newsXpress Forest Hill store has changed its hours on a Saturday.  It now closes at 1pm.  Tenants in a shopping centre have an obligation to support each other.  We rely on the traffic Australia Post pulls as do other retailers nearby - indeed we rely on each […]

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The initiative from Tattersalls to donate their proceeds from this Saturday’s Tattslotto draw to the Alfred Hospital Burns Unit in support of the Bushfire Appeal is excellent and deserves kudos. I especially like that they have been transparent in their press announcement about what they expect to make - $3.5 million.
That said, I […]

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Newsagents on the Central Coast of New South Wales are reporting that freight company 1st Fleet Express has issued accounts which apply an increase in their fees for collecting unsold magazines, returns, by 66% and applying this increase retrospectively.
NANA, the state association representing newsagents in NSW is right on to this issue and has advised […]

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Newsagents are flocking to Cardplai, the greeting cards which are sold with music downloads as the gift. My software company, Tower Systems, has exclusively partnered with Cardplai through our eziPass software. We have done this work pro-bono for the benefit of newsagents. We were offered a cut of every sale but preferred […]

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I was surprised to see stamps advertised as being available at Officeworks. When we applied for one of our newsagencies Australia Post refused. They said we were too close to one of their shops. I know of an Officeworks next to an Australia Post shop. I bet they have stamps. […]

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A newsagent called me last week to ask for help.  They received a bill for $4,000 for software support.  No, I didn’t tell them to switch to my software company, Tower Systems.  I advised them that I know of newsagents paying just $1,500 a year to their current software company for support (mediocre as it […]

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I have been given until the close of business Monday to remove postings and comments here relating to Universal Magazines.

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The 300 or so newsagents using the Pos Browser software may want to contact the company about their claim today that they print mobile phone recharge vouchers through their software.
Tower Systems is currently the only newsagent software supplier able to offer mobile phone and phonecard vouchers, including for Optus and Vodafone, from within newsagent point […]

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While the future of Bill Express remains unknown - the company extended its trading halt another five days today (groan) - the hunt for evidence and for people of interest by those behind several possible court and other actions continues.
Prior to joining the Board of the Australian Newsagents’ Federation in December 2003, I was provided […]

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I was surprised when Bill Express announced their deal with the Swish group last month about in-store advertising screens. This was the day before Bill Express sought suspension because of a supplier dispute. The Bill Express / Swish deal trumpeted a combined massive network and talked up expectations. 3,500 newsagents knew otherwise. […]

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The State and Federal governments missed an opportunity to lead yesterday by not reaching agreement on the plastic shopping bag issue.  As I blogged here a month ago, many consumers prefer plastic bags.  This is why most retailers don’t levy a charge.  Government action makes enforcement easier.  While I am not keen on regulation, the […]

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Bernard Zimmermann, Director of POS Solutions, has claimed on his company blog today that our work on eziPass is not being done for free. Bernard has knowingly published false and misleading information. While I’d rather ignore this, I have to make it clear that eziPass is free.
My software company, Tower Systems, has developed […]

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Howard Owens has an excellent blog post on information ethics in the context of blogging (among other things).  His words are an excellent reminder to all bloggers and those who comment on blog posts.  Here is part of what Howard wrote:
The information ethic begins with each person who both understands the power of information and […]

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This American Express stand has been outside one of our shops for at least two weeks.  I’ve bee harassed every time I walk past - and I do mean harassed.  They ask, I say no thanks and they usually come back with what, you don’t want to save money or how can you know you […]

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