The South Australian government's decision to direct schools to buy stationery and office products from Corporate Express (now known as Staples) and Office Max has created a "life threatening" situation for the state's 400 newsagencies
For the first time, the SA government has included state schools in its office products tender, a decision that has angered the independent newsagency and stationery supply industry, which believes it has been unfairly excluded from the estimated $40 million education market.
Newsagency co-operative ANCOL group general manager Grant Eckert told Stationery News that the decision to award the bulk of the office products and stationery tender to the two multinational companies could prove a "life threatening" situation for ANCOL and its wholesale division KW Wholesale Stationers.
"We are going to fight this decision head on," he said. "This not only affects newsagencies but a lot of other stakeholders. We were not even short-listed nor given the courtesy of a call to say we had not been successful with our tender. I challenge the point that the appointment of the two multinationals will save money.
"It will devastate us," Eckert said. "We've been suppliers to this market for 40 years. It's worth $10 million a year plus another $6 million a year to our associated newsagents," he said.
Lobbyist appointed
Eckert said ANCOL has appointed a registered government lobbyist and a media and communications consultant to support the group's campaign to get a better deal for its members.
SA's Finance Minister Michael O'Brien has rejected claims that hundreds of jobs would be lost as a result of the change.
O'Brien told ABC Radio that the new government contract was needed after much-publicised revelations earlier this year that some government staff received gifts or benefits from printer cartridge suppliers after making large purchases.
One OP reseller told Stationery News that the decision was a result of the "shonky cartridge" story was "all crap".
According to the reseller, he had written confirmation from the government as far back as 2009 that its "game plan" was to have a single supplier.
Under the new arrangement, newsagents outside the metropolitan area could still deal with schools, except for the purchase of printer cartridges.
Newsagencies and stationers are still able to supply schools with art and craft products. However, Eckert said this was a poor outcome as it was difficult to determine which stationery products were classified as "art and craft".
Eckert also questioned the government's claim that CE/Staples and Office Max would be required to deliver supplies within 24 hours of ordering, as he said both companies would be shipping from their Melbourne warehouses.
In a recent interview, O'Brien said: "It's got to be basically packed and despatched from within South Australia, so my view is that they will be creating additional jobs, so the outcome should be no net loss of jobs within South Australia."
Eckert said ANCOL's workforce doubled to more than 120 people during the back-to-school period.
Opposition education spokesman David Pisoni said the decision will be "devastating to small family businesses like Balaklava-based Warehouse Matrix and the newsagents co-operative ANCOL based at Allenby Gardens."
"These are local companies that employ South Australians, it is not right that they have been banned from selling to local schools," he added.
