I know, I should not be shocked by the decision by Gordon and Gotch to increase supply of a title with a sell through of 30% to 45%. But I am. I am shocked that in this tough marketplace with flat or declining magazine sales Gordon and Gotch would send me more of something which struggles to sell in my newsagency.
Gotch’s own data would reflect that I usually sell 4 copies of this title. They have increased me from 10 to 14 copies.
In my view, this is unconscionable conduct. Given the renewed interest at the ACCC in unconscionable conduct under new Chairman Rod Sims maybe they could take a look at this. I am sure I have not been singled out by Gotch for being knowingly grossly oversupplied. Indeed, I know from other newsagents that Gotch is performing particularly poorly at the moment on oversupply. Newsagents carry the cost.
Magazine publishers who wonder why newsagents early return titles without thought have the reason right here. Newsagents use early returns to hit back at poor behaviour.
I’ve not gone to Gotch about this particular issue as I should not have to do this. They say they are the magazine distribution experts. I guess they are if you look at it from their perspective. These extra four copies are sent in an effort to get my cash and thereby become the banker, again, to the Gotch model.
For a company committed to building real partnerships with our customers, Gotch is failing based on consistent behaviour like this.
I consider their continued oversupply to be a breach of contract let alone appalling customer service.
Every magazine publisher with a title distributed through Gotch should be concerned by this behaviour which hurst the newsagency channel.
i was finally happy with both suppliers , i was able this month to get my account down to what i believe to be at the point where i actually make money out of mags BUT then my stock starts arriving this week and i am sure i have never seen so many mags before so looks like they are making up for last sales last month . Oh well time to play the early return game again .
EMG seems to have sent me all the stock that they list on there website . My shop is only so big and i have only so much space for magzines so there will be early returns
Shaun the alternative is that you call them on 02 8719 3505 and find out what this has happened and discuss with them what you would like. This gets the issue addressed at the source.
Early returning only fixed what you have in stock, it does not adjust supply.
Can we work towards changing our contracts to stipulate a percentage above sales that can be supplied by the distributors. A maximum of 33% above sales would result in a 25%return based on historical sales yet allow for 33% growth for issues that had something to them thatincreased sales.
If something along these lines was part ofthe contract there could be penalties included for non conformance.
New titles would be supplied at a minimal quantity based on a formula using overall sales and similar to the IPS model given a few issues to prove themselves and then be canceled if no sales resulted.
Probably far from a perfect solution but we need a base to start from and something along these lines may be the way to go.
I’ve had the same problem as you Shaun S. EMG seems to have sent me a range of titles that I’ve never kept before. While I appreciate their new commission and returns method it doesn’t give them free reign to just send me titles. Will be early returning some of the new ones if they don’t have any sales movement by this time next week. With my pocket count decreasing as of early the following week I won’t have the space for extra titles anymore so something has to give.
Mark , when you’ve previously made a case to the ACCc what reports and information did they require ? I know you were previously unsuccessful but I might give it a go as well considering the noises being made by the new ACCC chief. I’m only a little guy by comparison but surely if enough of us make noise then something will happen.
Brendan,great idea but who would write that contract ,the same people that have no need to change the contract , it will never happen business is going great for them . My average friday delivery for GG almost trippled today full of crap magazines . Why ,because they can do what ever they want . NDC is at double of what my normal friday delivery is and why , because they do what ever they want .
Publishers you should fix the problem with your distibutors before it is to late . Don’t worry about why a few newsagents early return your tittle ,when the bigger picture is a whole lot more than just a few tittles .
My first thought today when i unpacked all of that stock which the bulk was EMG magazines was to early return the whole damm lot because i am sick and tired of trying to find money at the end of the month just so it can all be repeated next month , it is the same old story every month. After an hour of winging to myself i thought maybe EMG sent a lot today because of how there new system is and that stock comes out at the beginning of the month and not at the end, not sure but i now have all there stock on the shelf to sell .
So that leaves me with GG well most of there stock has been topped and now being returned .
Shauns I am exactly the same with the crap magazines delivered from both distributors today. Three quarters have been early returned because they are magazines i have previously TRIED to cancel and have reappeared or are just crap that will not sell. When is this going to end??
last month was the first in a long time that i have made any money out of magazines . How does everyone else go do you make money out of them or are they out weighed but the cost of the mags . I don’t know what the hell i am doing wrong i have the best pos system to help me go through my mags . I think i know what i am doing but maybe i don’t .
I would not early return any EMG magazines as this is the trial period with higher margins and 4 week display period. We have created a display just for EMG titles to capitalise on the improved trading terms and hope to sell more mags as a result. We have to support the publishers that are changinfg things to better support us.
Brendan , tottaly agree . I first thought i was not going to keep them as i mentioned i was thinking what the hell is going on here mags comeing out from every direction , so after a while i kept them all bar 1 or 2 tittles that i have not stocked for awhile due to no sales . At the end of the day wether i make more money out of a magzine makes no fifference at all to me when the mag does not sell
Shauns I have the same problem with my magazine bills. I returned half of what was delivered last month, but still my bill was more than the prvious month. My bills seem to continually increase even though I seem to be returning more stock. It is so hard and time consuming to try and contol magazine bills, and that is with a good pos. It is getting to the stage you empty your shelves before cut off for returns, which you should’t have to do, but it has become necessary.
DM i sometimes think that in the past because i have massed early returned that it catches up with you and eventually all you are doing is early returning as there is no current returns coming off, so there is no option but to early return more stock just to get that damm bill down .
Not sure if that makes sence to anyone else but me 🙂
I view the last three years in the following way. I am a boa constrictor and have been made to swallow a rhinocerous. It has taken time to go through my sytem, but I actually think I’ve nearly processed the rhino now, and things should not get
any worse. The boa constrictor is my cash flow. The rhinocerous was the BAS for both the business and personal, which continued to be at certain levels even though we had a financial downturn. I finally have a new BAS assessment for the next 12 months (and a whopping great tax return) and things are on an even keel. The govt must be STARVED of funds from retailers if anyone else is like me over the last 2 years, they aint getting much blood tax outta this stone at the moment ! Managing the bills has NOT been easy in the last 18 months.
Nothing new here really as they have no need (penalty) to Justify what they do to anyone and never have.
Network has been no better the last 2 deliveries either.
This could be due to publishers wanting there mags out for sale early now thinking they can have a longer shelf life and dodge an early return.
In theory that has merit but in shelf space it is impossible for my Newsagency to help them out and yes the Australian tittles I do try hard to help.
e.g. I have 20 facing for 4×4 mags at this moment I could fill 40-50 there is just that many being forced onto me.
Today from G&G I have the USA tittles flooding in say Tattoo mags of which I have 10 facing some of these mags are OVER 3 times the USA price how do I justify that to the customer that asks me a fair question about the price? So I need to choose the tittles I let run in the HOPE of sales.
I do choose 99% of the time the Australian Published over the rubbish I am MADE to carry of the overseas tittles I would be more then happy to not receive any at all of the overseas titles.
As a rule I will not try to early return until the last week of our invoicing but of late if I can not give it a home there is no point holding it and I don’t have enough room to swing a cat!
It really makes me wonder how in my own business where I make money or go broke I can be dictated to by magazine and newspaper companies and I often catch myself thinking would the game end without these 2 money sinks.
I should type /end rant
My experience is that network is improving while Gotch is going the other way. Three years ago the opposite was true.
Mark GG has gone bad to worse ever since they swapped all there staff for a call center . Back on the days whenmyou could call up GG and get help are long gone you knew who you where talking to and problems got fixed ,now days if you offered me a million dollars I still would not be able to tell you any of there names.
Hi Guys,
Shaun be greatful its the start of the month, not the end. If room permits we keep a lot and early return as little as possible…
Then the last week of the month is returns week… we usually send back about $5-$6k in that week… Its worked for us, for nearly 2 years we have never had a month where our invoice is more than we have sold.
Its hard work and yes we do miss the odd title, however we still have 20 odd days to go before we have to return and in that period (space permitting) we may sell something that we dont normally
Cheers
Peter
It is painful, I am glad others have shared how hard it is financially and the storage war.
Regarding EMG (Express) I have had a few communications with them after Mark pointed me in the right direction, email EMG circulation like I did or phone them and from my experience I was very happy with the responses. This publisher wants to engage so let them help you ease the pain and adjust your supplies through them.
It is hard if you do not have room or pockets however I am going to wait until the end of the month, the Tops only returns is the catalyst for me to hang in their until the end of the month.
Good luck.
The 4WD category in the industry as a whole is a major problem unless you have enough display space, something has to break.
4WD is an issue with so many titles and copies but……if you can make the space how about a dedicated display of them for a couple of weeks. We’ve used an old card fixture for the EMG mags and this has a) given us a few more pockets and b) created an attractive display that promotes what should be the most profitable magazines in the store at the moment.
Not every one will be able to create this space but it’s woth trying to.
We have gone with deeper magazines pockets – up to three times deeper than a traditional pocket in some cases. This gives us flexibility.
Looking forward do we know if there are going to be magazine deliverys on monday 26th december and monday 2nd january?
Every time we have a public holiday, the magazine companies assure us our stock is delivered as normal, and every time the courier company refuse to run on a public holiday and I get no stock. Yet Gotch for example have argued with me about this, insisting that I have recieved stock and having the gall to suggest I’ve misplaced it!!
What is going on with these suppliers this month . FEAST normally get 4 sell 2 and now they send me 10
.
Good Food normally get 10 sell maybe 4 they send me 20
They are desperate for your MONEY ! Good Food seems to be a double issue ie won’t be another till Feb. But I usually get 4 Good Food and have been sent 16 !! Feast allocation was OK this time.
As usual at holiday time, my shop has NOT grown bigger, BUT I am expected to display all the regular issues AND all the Holiday issues all in the same space. Sorry publishers, no can do, it is physically IMPOSSIBLE.