The issue of supply has been a thorn in this industry for decades. Even in 1944, NANA's earliest record shows that Newsagents were unimpressed with the oversupply of magazines!

The impact of excessive oversupply creates a major cash-flow problem for all Newsagents, magazine slots taken up by unprofitable titles, the additional freight cost for returns, as well as increased labour handling costs. Whereas being undersupplied results in loss of sales.

Previous approaches had been made by NANA and others to the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC) as early as 2008. However, the ACCC declined to be involved primarily because they view this as a business dispute between two parties under contract and there are sufficient dispute resolution processes available.

As such, NANA has worked already been working with NSW and ACT Newsagents to resolve their oversupply and undersupply issues, including using the dispute resolution process available via the magazine distributors, and also legal actions via NSW and the ACT's business dispute resolution tribunals like the CTTT and the ACAT.

NANA has been assisting Newsagents by working with them to assemble the following information:

1. the list of magazine titles for each magazine distributor showing 0% sell-through over a 6- or 12 month period
2. demonstration (or not) of 60% sell-through rates for over 50% of titles for each of the magazine distributors for the last 6 or 12 months
3. magazine sell-through rates report per Newsagent for each of the magazine distributors for the last 6 or 12 months
4. the Newsagent's own monthly sales reports and magazine distributor's monthly invoices over the last 6 or 12 months for each of the magazine distributors
5. calculation of the amount of time, labour costs and freight charges per month for the last 6 or 12 months in processing returns

NANA uses the above information to firstly present to the relevant magazine distributor using their dispute resolution process. Failing which, NANA makes a submission:

1. for legal action via the CTTT (in NSW) or the ACAT (in ACT)
2. for assistance via the NSW Small Business Commissioner

NANA has already been known to take suppliers to legal courts like the CTTT or the ACAT so that a legal outcome can be made with respect to the business dispute.

Newsagents might like to consider the following actions that may also help them solve oversupply/undersupply of magazines:

• seek a Range Review with each of the magazine distributors
• retrieve own sales data of the last 12 months from XchangeIT (if available)
• compliance with the requirements of the commercial contracts
• identify the Dispute Resolution Process as described in Newsagents' contracts with magazine distributors
• prepare for alternate legal actions and remedies as per NANA legal advice

NANA look forward to working with you.