I was at The Works (part of the Bed Bath and Table retail network) in Hawthorn the other day and already they have their Easter products at 25% off. While they do discount seasons, I don’t recall them discounting this early.
It could have to do with the amount of stock they have.
The displays were excellent, stunning, inspiring. But there was a ton of stock they need to move.
Tabcorp has been approving plenty of tobacco businesses as lottery outlets, providing foundational financial support for these tobacco businesses in regional and rural Australia.
The health and social harm of cigarettes is well documented. yet, here is Tabcorp, helping to support the reach of cigarette retailers. This is not the behaviour I’d expect from a company that says it cares for the community.
Tabcorp has a proud history of supporting our industry partners and the communities in which we live, work and play.
We have established key partnerships with a range of charitable organisations such as the Starlight Children’s Foundation, Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia, OzHarvest and Conservation Volunteers Australia, and also industry-linked charities such as the National Jockeys Trust and the Melbourne Racing Club Foundation.We engage with them to provide financial contributions and share our resources, networks, skills, expertise and people, to help improve the communities around us.
For the 2020 financial year, Tabcorp’s support to charities and community organisations totalled approximately $12.6 million. This voluntary support was provided through direct donations, unclaimed prize money donations, in-kind giving and forgone revenue, management costs and employee time. For further details regarding some of our recent partnerships and sponsorships see below.
Looking at some of the approved businesses, their model is tobacco and lotteries, with tobacco products discounted, and lotteries providing the commercial support necessary for the business to be viable and to have the capacity to sell cheap cigarettes.
What a health story Tabcorp!
Even the company’s position on the environment is compromised by their apparent love of cigarette shops becoming lottery retailers.
Tabcorp is committed to minimising its environmental impact.
Tabcorp is committed to minimising its environmental impact and operating as efficiently as possible. Our main focus is on reducing the consumption of natural resources to further minimise our environmental footprint.Due to the nature of our businesses, Tabcorp has a low environmental risk profile and footprint. Tabcorp is a low energy and water consumer, and is a low carbon emitter. Tabcorp does not meet any of the Federal Government’s thresholds for mandatory environmental reporting.
Refer to Tabcorp’s Corporate Responsibility Reports for details about Tabcorp’s environmental management activities.
Tabcorp’s website also speaks to workplace health and safety:
Health, Safety and Wellbeing
Tabcorp focuses on providing a safe working environment and promoting health and wellbeing in the workplace.
We are committed to high standards of health, safety and wellbeing for all employees, contractors and visitors.Tabcorp supports a number of employee health, safety and wellbeing initiatives, including:
- Jobs at Home Day
- Safety Week
- RU OK Day
- Men’s Health Week
- International Women’s Day
- Harmony Day
Yet, by approving cigarette shops to become lottery retailers in particular it challenges the health and wellbeing of the community in which it serves.
I get that Tabcorp will say that it is responding to applicants, retailers seeking to offer lottery products in existing business. Maybe so, however, there are situations where such applications have been made where the existing lottery retailer has capacity to grow sales and desire to grow sales, and Tabcorp has objected to the new retailer being approved. In these situations, it appears Tabcorp is favouring the cigarette retailer.
If I was a Tabcorp shareholder, this would concern me.
If I was running a charity receiving funds from Tabcorp, I’d be concerned about their apparent support for expanding the reach of cigarette retail in Australia.
These are matters relating to social responsibility, in addition to the core issue of placing local small business retailers that already sell lottery products under undue pressure through approving new outlets without evidence and to need.
Donna Janke picked up a beautiful bouquet of roses from the local newsagency, Paperplay Inverloch, for partner Marie Hogben, who sold flowers on behalf of Elsie’s Florist on Valentine’s Day. https://t.co/9QmGOBOCur
— Shelby Brooks (@shelbymbrooks) February 16, 2021
A newsagent recently became annoyed when one of the sales people from Tower Systems, the POS software company I own, said that Tower was not a good fit for them.
They wanted to switch to the Tower newsagency software and wanted a price deal, citing the price of other software. Rather than agree to match or come close to the price, the Tower sales person explained it was unreasonable to seek a price match for a very different product and a very different support experience. They wished the newsagent all the best and advised we were not a good fit.
The prospective customer pushed back saying they would only spend a certain amount of money. Not budging, the Tower sales person again wished them all the best.
This is when the newsagent got annoyed – that Tower was willingly walking away.
Ages ago I decided Tower would not chase prospective customers down a rabbit hole of discounting. No one wins from that, especially not a customer who wants their software company to evolve and support the software in a timely manner, especially not a newsagent who expects their software to connect to business partners.
This is on my mind today because of a product related discussion I had with another newsagent recently. They were chasing cheaper products with which to compete with a nearby discount variety store.
My view is that people who buy on price are not loyal. They will always chase price. If you meet them at the price point they have sought, you have not won because the price battle will come back at you again and again.
Being prepared to walk away when an opportunity is not a good fit for your business is liberating.
I want to be involved in businesses, tech and retail, that offer good value at a fair price. That leads me to an approach of wishing some people all the best and saying we are not right for them.
I don’t chase cheap products for my shops even thought we are near Aldi and the Reject Shop. I chase quality and value. Customers react by spending. The same is true with technology. I think one of the reasons Tower Systems serves more than 1,700 newsagents with its newsagency software is the focus on the product and service ahead of price.
It is liberating not sweating over every prospective customer. It’s also a key reason for growth in many business situations I think.
Easter is a perfect time to send a card to a friend, family member or loved-on, to remind them you think of them, love them and appreciate them.
While for many, Easter is a religious time of the year, for plenty it is more of a time for being close with those we care about. This is why an Easter card can serve a wonderful role in providing that hug for someone you may not see.
For the best range of Easter cards, shop your local newsagency. For fun Easter cards, shop your local newsagency. For spiritual and religious Easter cards, shop your local newsagency.
Yes, your local newsagency is the best place for Easter card shopping this year.
If you are not sure what you are looking for, ask for help. At your local newsagency you will find good and knowledgable help available. This is another reason shopping for Easter cards at your local newsagency makes sense.
From the funny to heartfelt to spiritual to family-centred, Easter cards at your local newsagency cover all sorts of situations and opportunities.
The right Easter card will be something they cherish, hang onto, and look at fondly years down the track. This is why card giving is so important – it’s not only about the greeting today, it is also about the wonderful memories you will encourage years later.
You can think of your Easter card as the hug that keeps on giving.
Just like people can spot flowers from a petrol station or no name brand chocolates from a $2 shop, people know good cards when they see them. They turn them over, learn more about the cards, where they were made. They can feel value. They can feel the quality they want to give through their keepsake card choice.
Your local newsagent appreciates your business. They appreciate that you have a choice as to where you purchase your Easter cards. They would love to help you share love this Easter with Easter cards purchased from their collection.
Easter is a perfect time of the year for letting others know how you feel and your local newsagent is the perfect retailer to help you do this.
A newsagent recently received a bill from Nine Media claiming a refund for papers not delivered going back eight years. Nine Media, and prior to them, Fairfax, had been paying for delivery that was not done. Many thousands of dollars involved.
Another newsagent was direct debited by News Corp twice for the same amount for the same product. Making the situation challenging is that there is no name on the communication from News Corp – making it hard to work out the contact point. News Corp, to their credit, organised a refund once the issue was escalated.
While each situation is different they speak to the same issue – apparent issues with internal billing / accounting systems at Nine Media and News Corp.
What these companies need to understand is the possible impact on a small business from such unexpected action by a big supplier. This is an issue of social responsibility. Big businesses owe it to the small businesses they supply to quickly and easily resolve issues such as these. In each of the situations outlined above it is not playing out this way – creating considerable stress for the newsagents involved.
Footnote: the newsagent impacted by the Nine Media move could have seen the situation and corrected it years earlier had they audited their home delivery revenue against actual deliveries – a highly recommended business practice.
The Melbourne Gift & Lifestyle Fair will be held 20 – 22 March, 2021, at the Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre. Registrations are now open.
This trade show presents opportunities retailers in the gift and homewares spaces have missed for the last year.
I like that this is a three day trade show. Three days is a good amount of time, not too long. Here are the times:
I like that retailers will have an opportunity for buying in a tactile environment and will be able to talk through questions around timing and logistics challenges.
This trade show has an opportunity to be a hit. I certainly plan to attend, along with plenty of other retailers I know who are keen.
Click here for a flyer about the event.
The Australian Finance Industry Association, AFIA, the organisation engaged in self regulation of buy now pay later platforms is set to go live with a code of practice for its providers from March 1. This, from their release:
AFIA and its BNPL members have come together and propose to release a Code of Practice for the BNPL sector. The final Code will be released and come into effect on 1 March 2021.
The BNPL providers, who under AFIA’s guidance have drafted the Code, represent over 95 percent of the BNPL market including Afterpay, Brighte, Humm Group, Klarna, Latitude, Openpay, Payright and Zip Co.
A world-first for the BNPL sector, the draft Code is in direct response to ASIC’s review of the BNPL sector (ASIC Report 600) and an inquiry conducted by the Senate Economics Reference Committee, which recommended the development of a BNPL Code of Practice.
AFIA conducted six-week public consultation which was formally extended until 6 May 2020 due to the COVID-19 crisis. As part of the consultation process, it was important to give additional time to key stakeholders to provide feedback.
The Code of Practice will be governed by a Code Compliance Committee (CCC). The CCC is chaired by Dr Michael Schaper. Jillian Brewer has been nominated by the Consumers’ Federation of Australia as the consumer advocate representative. Craig Pudig is the CCC’s industry representative.
Part C of the code relates to retailers:
PART C – MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR OUR MERCHANT AND RETAIL PARTNERS
Each Code Compliant Member will require its merchant and retail partners to meet minimum standards. These standards are to:
- Act lawfully, fairly and ethically in their dealings with consumers;
- Communicate clearly when dealing with consumers and in marketing and advertising materialthat relates to Buy Now Pay Later Products or Services;
- Safeguard customer confidentiality;
- Respond to customer complaints on a timely basis; and
- Require that their employees or agents understand the standards and are trained to meet them.
Each Code Compliant Member will continue to monitor their merchant and retail partners to ensure they meet these minimum standards.
With many newsagents using buy now pay later for payment in-store an online, being across the code is important.
The half-year results from Tabcorp make interesting reading. Lottery retailers need to understand the results given that a core part of their business is reliant on revenue from Tabcorp products. Purchase through digital platforms grew by 20.9% over the previous period. This is excellent growth for Tabcorp.
Now, look at the percentage of lottery revenue from digital since 2016:
This is a graph from an investor advisory business.
The growth trajectory for the purchase of lottery products via digital platforms is set. Retailers need to take note, especially given the considerable capital and other assets Tabcorp requires them to invest.
Digital is growing faster than overall lottery revenue. Over the last six months, for example, lotteries revenue grew by 1.6% while the percentage of lotteries revenue purchased over digital platforms grew by 20.9%. That is the gap of concern for retailers.
If your shop is not experiencing a decline, others will be, they have to be on the Tabcorp results.
Personally, thinking of small business retailers, I would like to see Tabcorp reduce obligations on retailers in terms of the space in-store they demand, especially from entrance to the counter and at the counter itself. I would also reduce the visual noise from lottery products and free some of this space for retailers to be, hmm, retailers.
I would like to see Tabcorp enable retailers to make decisions that improve the viability of their businesses outside of lottery products. This could make the businesses stronger, which would be beneficial to Tabcorp.
I am not talking about tearing down signage or making retail lottery outlets look as dishevelled and inconsistent as what we see in the US. Rather, I am suggesting an easing of the space required in retail by Tabcorp and the barriers to other products being placed in the lotteries area. This could be done in a structured, co-operative way, a way that does not reduce lottery product sales in retail.
At the very least, Tabcorp could offer newsagents an easier retail model like they allow with On The Run.
Now, to those who will say here he goes, he hates Tabcorp blah, blah, blah. All very ho-hum. This post is acknowledging the evidence in Tabcorp’s numbers. If I had a product category in business over which I had control and which was experiencing this level of migration from over the counter to digital I would make a significant move to mitigate the impact of the trajectory before it actually cost me anything. That’s business.
Change is occurring. Smart retailers will move to minimise the impact on their business. Tabcorp is demonstrating its commercial preference.
There is a story brewing in the UK about the possible move of lottery ticket sales from over the counter to online.
The push to online is getting some good media coverage, including this in the Financial Times:
The UK’s National Lottery needs to be hauled into the digital age with scratch cards on mobile phones and greater presence on social media to halt the decline in people playing, the head of one of the main bidders to take over the licence has claimed.
Sir Keith Mills, chair of the bid by the Czech company Sazka, told the Financial Times that Camelot, the National Lottery’s current operator, had “not kept pace with change” after an explosion in online gambling lured away younger customers, causing it to lose 8.5m players in the past decade. Currently, about 40m people play National Lottery games.
Mills, who created Air Miles and led the London 2012 Olympic bid, added: “The money to good causes has plateaued and I do worry that unless the National Lottery is reinvigorated it will go into a decline.”
Not that this impacts lottery retailers in Australia, it does speak to the broader over the counter to online pitch.
From March 1, Australians will be able to access gambling apps from Google Play. This story has had minimal play in Australia. Kotaku covers it.
As spotted by 9to5Google, Google has announced a change that would permit certain real money gambling apps to be downloaded directly from the Google Play store. Gambling apps have been usable by Australian Android users before, but you’ve had to download them as separate APK files, not directly through the user store.
From March 1 this year, that policy will change. “We allow real-money gambling apps, ads related to real-money gambling, and daily fantasy sports apps that meet certain requirements,” a new policy on Google’s support page says.
…
Given how much Australians historically love to bet, this is a huge change. Android devices account for just under half of all mobile devices in Australia, although exactly how much depends on what chart you look at.
What is means is easier access to gambling apps through the Google Play platform and that means more opportunities for gamblers to access the products they gamble through.
All of this provides more options. Whereas for decades lottery outlets were the publicly available place for non betting gambling, today there are many more options and, from March 1, options increase.
Lotterywest has advised retailers of the ending of Covid related arrangements:
Hi
In March 2020, temporary measures were put in place to protect retailers and players when the COVID-19 pandemic commenced and the emergency period began. These measures included more flexibility with prize claims and suspending retailer service and terminal fees, as part of the State Government’s WA Recovery Plan.
The COVID-19 emergency period will end as of close of business Monday 15 March 2021 and the following will occur:
Reinstatement of service and terminal fees
The 12-month suspension of your service and terminal fees will end and your weekly service fee (0.5% on all games except Cash 3, Super66 and Scratch’n’Win) will be reinstated. We’ve also conducted our annual review of retailer fees and as a result your terminal fee will reduce to $33.00 (including GST) from $38.50.Please check your RCTI for the amount due in time for the sweep on Wednesday 17 March 2021. The fees will be reflected in your RCTI for period 11 and we’ll give you several reminders before this occurs.
Prize claim extension ending
The prize claim extension for players end and all tickets purchased after this date will have the standard 12-month period to claim any prizes. The option to email Lotterywest to claim a prize will also no longer be available.Please remove your ‘Claiming your prize’ ticket checker card and combo stand insert from draw close on Monday 15 March 2021.
See the flyer on Retail Link on what tickets are still eligible for the prize claim extension.
Here’s how we’ve supported you and the WA community through the emergency period
If you have any questions please contact Customer Services on 133 777 or chat to your Retail Relationship Officer.
Kind regards
Lotterywest
Too many suppliers to retailers are not transparent about supply chain challenges. They seem to think that not telling you about potential delays will keep your orders active and guarantee them sales.
It is frustrating hearing that the order you placed four months ago and was due in this week will not arrive for another six weeks. Frustrating because the supplier would have known many weeks ago. Shipping to Australia does not happen overnight.
I know there is a container shortage in China and limited capacity on ships from China to Australia at the moment. If I know that, suppliers would too.
Suppliers need to be more transparent with retailers, so we can plan to ensure our shops remain full. Their websites need to be more transparent on this, so that we don’t waste time creating orders that cannot be fulfilled as and when we need them.
Every supplier that is not appropriately transparent gets a black mark against them in my book. They will have to fight harder for business in the future.
Related to this is the question of product sourcing. China continues to be problematic politically but even more so in terms of supply certainty. I am more interested in suppliers that have moved to protect their supply chain, most likely by outside of China sourcing. or course, locally made is the best solution.
Toy supplier Modern Brands has sent ut care packs to retailers it would have otherwise met with at the Melbourne Toy Fair. This is a terrific move from the company timed to connect with the virtual events being run to capture orders at this important time of the year for toys.
Modern Brands is one of several suppliers engaging creatively with toy retailers this year without their being a physical Toy Fair event.
The unanticipated arrival of the care package has created a buzz that is important for this trade show and is certain to help encourage retailer purchases.
Feedback so far is that the virtual toy fair experiences are working well.
Considering the various trade shows connected with our channel, the Toy Fair is executing the trade show opportunity the best in my view.
After a full day’s Senate hearings where the Murdoch media denied they were a monopoly, what do his tabloids deliver today in 8 different cities? The same cookie-cutter article published in 8 different papers! They really take us for fools. #MurdochRoyalCommission pic.twitter.com/O3uyKHh29p
— Kevin Rudd (@MrKRudd) February 20, 2021
While in the past, territory protection respected retailers who invested with a supplier, today, with online as it is and the extent to which it is growing, territory protection does not make sense.
In one regional town, a shop was denied access to products from a sought-after supplier because another shop nearby had a range of products from them. They charged over the odds for the products. Shoppers found the same products online for a lower price. The local retailer found out and wanted the supplier to stop selling to any business that sold online. That revealed to the supplier that their local retailer was charging more than they would prefer. The supplier had previously rejected selling to another business in the town, to protect the original stockist.
Suppliers need to realise that territory protection is not what it used to be, thanks to online.
In my view, it is time to move on, time to open up and let the best retailer win. It is time to end territory protection.
Easter is what we make of it in our stores. We decide through our engagement whether this is a big or not so big season.
My advice is don’t get caught up in tradition, think about this season as one of connection. This can broaden your focus and provide a more useful pathway to sales success.
Here are some ideas to get you thinking…
Easter is considered by many to be a small season. I see it as full of opportunity and primed for fun in the newsagency. Chase year on year growth.
From ABC News Thursday:
Danni Hunter from the Property Council, an advocacy group for property developers and owners, said CBD hospitality and retail businesses relied on office workers being in the city.
“We can’t have an economic recovery without a CBD recovery, and that relies heavily on people having the courage and willingness to come back to the office, and hopefully soon without masks as well,” she told ABC Radio Melbourne.
What selfish, self-serving ignorant nonsense from Danni Hunter … but on point for what the folks at the Property Council wold want said.
No CBD in Australia is key to economic recovery.
Danni Hunter and her Property Council mates need too spend time on the high street and non regional and rural Australia. there, they will find terrific economic activity bring income home to local communities, new jobs being created and healthier local communities as a result.
What frustrated me about the ABC report is that Danni Hunter from the Property Council was not challenged. No principles of journalism were applied to the claim, the nonsense claim.
As I have written here plenty of times, small business, particularly high street, regional and rural small business are the economic heart of Australia. They contribute more value than a CBD based landlord. While P&L and Balance Sheet numbers for a Property Council member business equal many, maybe hundreds, of small retail businesses, I suspect that a close study would reveal the economic value in terms of job creation, community investment and taxes paid per dollar earned are higher in small retail businesses.
I get that lobbyists like Danni Hunter and lobby organisations like the Property Council need to do their selfish bidding. We however, do not need to buy into this. I certainly don’t.
Let me change gears here though, and consider this issue of the importance of the CBD from the context of an office based business owner …
Thinking about this as the owner of a software company with a mid-size office and talking with other business owners in similar situations – the CBD has lost its appeal to us and to many who work in offices. Employees are loving working from love, the hours saved each day, being closer to family. They have more money in their pocket. Lockdown has shown them that the trudge to the city CBD or to an office in the suburbs is not as important as it used to be. Businesses are happy with happier people. Businesses are happy, too, at the prospect of saving on office costs.
Danni Hunter and the Property Council must be scared that their businesses will be harmed because things will not snap back to where they were, because not everyone will return to the CBD. Who cares? Change is something we all have to deal with in business.
I guess my core point here is with the reporting – it needs to be more balanced and not merely publishing propaganda from the likes of the Property Council.
Customers continue to engage with Australian made. Some actively ask about it while others are drawn to it if you promote it. A newsagent told me yesterday about how this played out in their shop.
A customer in a newsagency was looking at two birthday cards, trying to decide which to purchase. Asked if they would like help, “It’s for my niece and I can’t decide. What do you think?” they said to the retailer. After looking at both cards, the retailer held out one card. “This one is made in Australia.” The customer bought that card.
On soc ail media, when I share images of Australian made cards and mention that we are grateful to support Australian artists and Australian printers the engagement we achieve is good.
Aussies really do want to support Aussie made. This is a live commercial opportunity for us.
This is on my mind this morning as earlier this week I heard from a newsagent who said their card rep made the comment that all card companies source their cards from China. This was in repose to the newsagent mentioning they were considering moving to another company that designed and printed in Australia. Of course, the card rep was outed as being either a liar or ignorant – each being an equally bad look.
Aussies really do want to support Aussie made.
We usually sell 2 or 3 copies of Maxim magazine. The circulation experts at Ovato think we need 40 copies of the latest issue. What a waste.
The circulation experts at Ovato will have an explanation, a glitch, human error or some such thing. I’ve heard it before plenty of times.
The survey I launched 24 hours ago seeking to understand the attitude of newsagents should magazine supply arrangements not change received over 150 responses:
What change do I want? It is simple, really. I want magazines supplied on terms at least equal to those of my main competitor, supermarkets.
The current model disadvantages newsagents. Unless there is change, yes, I am likely to reduce my commitment to magazines.
It’s my view that unless there is significant change requirements on newsagents regarding magazines, newsagents are likely to reduce their interest in and support of the category.
With supermarkets benefiting from scanned based trading, saving hours on arrivals and returns per week per store, not having to cover the cost of shrinkage and not having to pay for the right to get access to electronic invoice data, newsagents are competitively disadvantaged.
How do you feel knowing that your biggest competitor in the magazine category has trading terms that are significantly better than yours? I know of some newsagents who have quit the category because of this.
So, I have a question for you. I’ll keep it general and start with what we have today. If nothing changes do you plan to keep your magazine commitment as is, increase or decrease?
Taking your newsagency online: a dive into newsXpress national and local store websites.
Tuesday, Feb. 16 @ 2pm Melbourne time.
Today at 2pm, I am hosting a new free workshop for any newsagentinterested in taking their newsagency business online.
This session will look at this topic from the context of what newsXpress does and has done for 5+ years. We will look at the national sites and the local store sites:
I am doing this new session using newsXpress national website and local store website examples because I have good data and personal experiences I can speak to. You can rely on this information to make more informed decisions yourselves at the local store level as well in the context of any group you are part of.
newsXpress was the first marketing group in any retail channel in Australia to deliver local store connected websites with a live quantity on hand data feed. The learnings have helped other groups step into this. lucrative space.
This will be an online session, which you can access from anywhere with this link:
https://zoom.us/j/97889421359?pwd=R2puem9RWUVFS1lFTStXMjNHMzRIdz09
Meeting ID: 978 8942 1359 Passcode: 791972
Two and a half years ago I shot this video in which I discuss the challenges that I see for newsagents in the convenience space. I share it again today in response to the topic one again being live in our channel.
