Sometime between Wednesday morning and Friday morning last week, a visual merchandiser entered my newsXpress Forest Hill store and created a half waterfall display for Mindfood magazine above our weeklies. This is despite our placement of a half waterfall display in the usual location for Mindfood – which they left in place.
To create this display they took down the titles I had personally and tactically placed in this premium location. They did this without seeking permission and without offering compensation for the use of the space.
Mindfood is loss making for us. Network Services does not supply based on sales data. If they did, we would have received far less than what was sent for the latest issue.
I can hear a possible explanation – that we were supplied extra stock because the Mindfood publisher was spending money on in-store promotion. If this is true and if the extra promotion was a co-location strategy along the lines of what they did in my store then they should have negotiated a fee with me to access the premium space.
I took the display down Friday morning. I am returning half the Mindfood stock on Monday – we still won’t sell out.
Am I angry? Yes! This action violates my business. I am sick of it. I am sick of magazine distributors pushing product without offering fair and reasonable control and then demanding that I carry the financial risk of their supply decision.
Which other retailer would let a supplier come in and take control of their business in this way for a product for which you make only 25% margin?
I intend to use Mindfood as one of the examples in a complaint to the ACCC on the magazine supply model.
Mark
We raised this point with you a few weeks back at one of your Newsagent of the future meetings. We have this same problem week-in-week-out with our merchandiser. They have no respect for us or our shops. How many other newsagents have this problem?
Greg we have had a good with merchandisers until this incident. The arrogance of the move and their abuse of prime space with a poor performing title left me wanting to strike out.
I don’t allow magazine merchandisers to do any displays in my shop.
I’m happy to discuss the week’s magazines with them and receive posters. However, our magazine displays are based on an integrated approach to maximise sales across our entire product range.
I am also happy to complain to the ACCC and will use this trigger to do so. It will not be on this title though it will be another. In my opinion this is an unconscionable contract arrangement and they abuse their position of power.
no merchandisers there to do that in my store though.
i guess you are a member of acp connect.
Eric if you knew your business you would realise this is not an ACP title.
I reckon ERIC must sell about 500 of these with out merchandisers…
Whats a merchandiser? I have had my business 7 years now and though only being 2 hours from Sydney we have never seen one. I think I will keep it that way 🙂
we had merchandisers at Seymour store when i purchased it two and a half years ago; we got rid of every one within 6 months because they tought they had the authority to do what they wanted.
Sorry for my ignorance – but isn’t it in your best interest to generate as much store traffic as possible – or would you like Coles and Woolworths to replace you in terms of Magazine and Stationery Sales? The other result of your ignorant stance is that you support the argument for Magazine Publishers to move to an online based model. I think that your issue is a case of biting the hand that feeds you.
Casey in terms of Mindfood, the hand is not feeding me and that is part of my point. The other point is that my store is my place and merchandisers are there as guests, they should not work against me.
we have posters outside our store. i personally choose which posters we put up to promote magazines that we want to push and have an actual history of moving.
starting a few weeks ago…. the posters i put up where being replaced by posters of magazines that either are not moving at all for us for months, or we only receive 1 or 2 copies of.
imagine that, posters of magazines that we receive 20-30 copies of being replaced.
i work my ass off to make a living and these people just do whatever they like without even considering possibly implications for us.
they don’t even close the poster slot properly.
i am actually waiting for chance to catch whoever is doing that and i will shame him in public and tell him what is on my mind.
ED, i guess the lady from impact mechandising
Maybe, my newsagency is small one so not much involvement from the publishers. The lady from Impact comes to my newsagency each week, but always seek my permission before putting up any posters or arrange any magazines. As always, I choose which poster to put up and the location. I have no issue at all.
Today we had a state manager from ACP and a merchandiser come in the middle of busy lunch time trade and cause chaos. We hadn’t seen a merchandiser or anyone from ACP in about a year and they came in and made it look like they owned the place and in the future Pacific magazines will definetly be getting the better exposure.
I hope you told them to fu*k off to Coles LOL
if they come i will tell them to f$$k off!!!