Northern & Shell has decided to stick with the principle of pro rata terms where, from October 4, it is raising the cover price on the Express and Star by 5p or 10p across most of the country. A universal increase of 10p to 50p on the Saturday Star has been applauded, by the NFRN, as has the universal price increase by 5p to £1.35 on the Sunday Express.
The NFRN statement continues: Whilst the 10p price experiment on the Daily Star in Carlton has ended, unfortunately, both there and in the Central TV area the Monday to Friday price remains at a low 20p, but in other TV regions, where the Daily Star and Daily Express prices are increased by 5p or 10p and vary from 25p to 30p (50p Saturday), retailers are receiving a welcome boost to their cash margin.
A similar situation applies to the Daily Express and whilst a price increase by 5p to 45p with pro rata terms in all but Scotland is very good news, the 5p price increase in Scotland still keeps the title at a disappointing 25p.
Says NFRN National President Parminder Singh (pictured): “It seems that Northern & Shell is adopting a cautious approach to restoring prices to a reasonable level and is experimenting with different prices in different TV regions to see how this impacts on sales. Whilst this has some downsides, in that it seems unfair that retailers will earn differing amounts in different parts of the country, for doing exactly the same job, (which could cause problems for competing retailers on the fringes of TV areas), on the positive side Northern and Shell has listened to our concerns and is maintaining the principle of pro rata retailers terms where there is a price increase. This has to be welcomed in a climate where other publishers are treating independent retailers as a cash-cow to abuse with impunity.”
Mr Singh concludes: “I hope the outcome of this experiment results in Northern & Shell gaining confidence to move to a higher price on the Daily Express and Daily Star everywhere. Whilst we are not without understanding when publishers sometimes feel compelled to adjust prices to maintain market share, this should never be at the expense of retailers. Neither should these price promotions be other than short-term events, since the knock-on effect of long-term reduced prices, is to depress prices across the rest of the market. That is not good news for anyone.”
