# UK Magazine prices



## p45 (17 Nov 2008)

These should be a lot cheaper by now but I haven't noticed any change at all.    Some mags (@3.99) are selling 2 euro over what they actually should be.   Rip off Ireland's last stand?


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## Protocol (17 Nov 2008)

Eason's, who are also a wholesaler, buy stg every 3 months, and so the stg prices will take a while to adjust.


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## path (28 Nov 2008)

Protocol said:


> Eason's, who are also a wholesaler, buy stg every 3 months, and so the stg prices will take a while to adjust.


So why does every other retailer have to pass on sterling differences straight away??


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## Jethro Tull (29 Nov 2008)

I can't remember the rate being £1 = €1.50 three months ago

I know there are VAT differences etc but that doesn't explain this level of price difference. Magazine prices are one of the biggest rip offs in Ireland


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## PaddyBloggit (29 Nov 2008)

I used to love buying PC magazines .... but they were a luxury at €10.00 ish ..... only half read some of the time and full of ads!

I can do a lot of my reading online now.


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## Sherman (30 Nov 2008)

Protocol said:


> Eason's, who are also a wholesaler, buy stg every 3 months, and so the stg prices will take a while to adjust.



Gimme a break, Sterling has been weak against the Euro for the best part of the year.  Profiteering by Eason's and the like who know the docile Irish sheep will keep paying whatever is asked of them.


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## diarmuidc (2 Dec 2008)

Sherman said:


> Profiteering by Eason's and the like who know the docile Irish sheep will keep paying whatever is asked of them.


eh? Sounds very Joe Duffy-esque. Do you know for a fact that Easons make a profit unethically? Do you know what their Irish cost base vs a UK equivalent cost base is? Do you know what their profit margins are? Do you know what supply and demand is? Maybe that's why the prices are different?


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## ubiquitous (2 Dec 2008)

path said:


> So why does every other retailer have to pass on sterling differences straight away??



Er, do you know something the rest of us don't


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## Protocol (2 Dec 2008)

What happens is they convert stg to euro every 3 months.

They add 5% for their "own costs" or "extra costs".

They also add 13.5% VAT.


I bought a mag last week at 375 stg.

That converts to 4.87 euro at 0.77 stg.

Add 5% = 5.11.

Add VAT = 5.80 euro.

The actual price was *6.09*.


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## wheels (2 Dec 2008)

Would the UK price not include VAT??

Anyway, I'd advise people to take out subscriptions if they buy magazines regularly. I got fed up of paying over 4euro a week for Time Magazine and subscribed at just 80cent a week, delivered to my door every Monday/Tuesday. It's fantastic.


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## Protocol (3 Dec 2008)

I think there is 0% VAT on mags in the UK.


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## wheels (3 Dec 2008)

Just looked that up and it appears to be true. What a shame the same can't be done here. 

Does that mean I should be technically paying VAT on my Time?


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## redstar (10 Dec 2008)

I bought a UK football mag for 3.10 in Londis. Then saw it for 2.85 around the corner in a local, family run shop. Guess where i'll buy the next edition ?


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## theresa1 (10 Dec 2008)

Dont even waste your time going into the following - Londis, Spar, Mace and Centra!


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## mossy (2 Jan 2009)

i am in the newsagency business and a customer of Easons. How's this for cuteness? Easons supply all their customers at full retail price (their designated price of course including 13.5% vat) less a discount of between 20% and 25%. So our hands are tied at what price we can charge. Easons should be roasted for their pricing policy.
Allowing for a 3 month delay, £1 sterling was €1.26 last Sept. Today a magazine priced at £1 retails at €1.69 or €1.70. £1 converted = €1.26, add 10% import and handling charge and then 13.5% vat on that = €1.57 tops. Minimum 10% extra for Easons. Nice one eh?


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## PaddyBloggit (2 Jan 2009)

You can't beat cornering the market mossy!


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## gm88 (2 Jan 2009)

To-day bought a magazine priced 68p.  It is also marked Spain/Greece €2.  I was charged €2.09.  

I believed that the Spain/Greece price was the charge for supplying the magazine abroad, and that I would be charged close enough to the exchange rate of 68p.

Should I go back to the shop (Spar) or is this reasonable being close enough to the €2 charged in Spain/Greece?


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## ang1170 (2 Jan 2009)

mossy said:


> i am in the newsagency business and a customer of Easons. How's this for cuteness? Easons supply all their customers at full retail price (their designated price of course including 13.5% vat) less a discount of between 20% and 25%. So our hands are tied at what price we can charge. Easons should be roasted for their pricing policy.
> Allowing for a 3 month delay, £1 sterling was €1.26 last Sept. Today a magazine priced at £1 retails at €1.69 or €1.70. £1 converted = €1.26, add 10% import and handling charge and then 13.5% vat on that = €1.57 tops. Minimum 10% extra for Easons. Nice one eh?


 
Nice one indeed.

I think this is a very good example of (a) low competition and (b) charging what market will pay.

Talk of "extra costs" and "we buy currency every 3 or 6 months or whatever" is just that: talk.

The reason prices are more higher here is because people are prepared to pay them. Thankfully, people are begining to wake up to this, and the alternatives that exist, but my guess is that it'll take a while yet.


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## theresa1 (2 Jan 2009)

As I said before stay away from Londis, Spar, Mace and Centra for everything.


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## Hillsalt (2 Jan 2009)

Protocol said:


> Eason's, who are also a wholesaler, buy stg every 3 months, and so the stg prices will take a while to adjust.



I have an interest in this topic. I recently discussed it at length with someone in the business. 

Eason wholesale was taken over by a UK company Menzies to form EMNews  [ www.menziesdistribution.com ] and they have one main rival in that of Irish company Newspread [ www.newspread.ie ] 

By all accounts, thet are bitter rivals and overload newsagents with unsolicited goods. They would cut each others throats to get exclusive distribution rights on a magazine/newspaper title. Newspread are sole distributors for RTE Guide, Star etc wheras EMNews have Sun and Time magazine, for example. 

Nevertheless, both companies distribute  the majority of titles (Hello, NME, Beano etc etc).

And despite this bitter rivalry, both companiies have the exact same pricing structure. They reccommend the exact same 'suggested retail price' which is usually rounded up by a few cents by 99% of shops.


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## panathon (2 Jan 2009)

and if everyone stopped paying, they have to drive the prices down, eg river island and next are 2 clothing stores who sidestep the whole currency issue... ie next have an irish online store and also an english one with  prices on the irish one still nearly 20 percent over the english price. River island still don't offer an online store  for irish customers - steer clear - rip off central...


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## mcaul (4 Jan 2009)

Easons purchase their sterling forward every 6 months, so expect a drop in magazine prices in the next few weeks. This should reflect current exchange of approx. 1.07 + distribution costs + vat @ 13.5% (partworks mags with accessories have 21% vat)
Therefore you should see a sterling price of £2 equate to a euro price of approx. €2.60.

From what I know of Easons, this price will remain for 6 months even if sterling strenghtens. 

Their exchamge rate for July to December was 1.26 and it stayed at this even though sterling went to 1.34 in late September.


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