Price fixing and commercial competency

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Getting full retail price for your replica match shirts changes the profitability of your merchandise significantly.  When Celtic sell a shirt through their retail outlets, they buy that shirt from through the manufacturer’s distribution on similar terms to any other retailer.  An item with a full retail price of £60 will have a gross markup of around £10.

If the discount retailers have access to the merchandise, they need to cut into that margin to drive business to their stores (online or otherwise), so will make do with a £5 markup.  If you are a consumer, the difference between an item at £55 or the same item at £60 is very little, but if you are a club retail operation, that 100% increase in gross markup, could see your net margin increase by around 300%.

If you are a club and want to protect your margin – all clubs do, this is not a bad thing – an exclusive deal with one retailer is the road to travel.  This is legal.  If you permit only two retailers access to your merchandise, they will either compete or have to illegally collude to fix prices.

This morning’s news that Newco and two retailers face charges of illegal price fixing is more a sign of commercial competency than a club exploiting its own fan base.  They are inexperienced and perennial underachievers compared to Celtic’s commercial team.  I’m less exercised on the desire to get an extra £5 for your shirts, they all want this, for the reasons outlined above.

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  1. Not surprised that Mickelson has joined the Saudi tour. But very disappointed that DJ has.

     

    I hope anyone who joins this tour are banned from playing in the Majors.

  2. bigrailroadblues on

    Coneybhoy, Friday at Shipbank with BelmontBrian and guest stars. We never stop. 😂

  3. garygillespieshamstring on

    My only interest in BoJo’s return of imperial measurements is if it leads to the return of the quarter gill of malt whisky in the pubs and a quarter of wine gums at the sweetie shop.

  4. Tom McLaughlin on

    BRRB

     

     

    I was in an Leith working men’s club last week watching Scotland v Ukraine. I was there by invitation and it was my first time in the club. The pints were very cheap, but what amazed me was that spirits were served up at 35ml.

     

     

    I was later surprised when I tried to buy my host a double whisky and was politely told as it was 35ml they didn’t serve doubles.

     

     

    Is this the law or was it just the club’s own rules? I didn’t think to ask and it wasn’t until the next day I began to wonder.

  5. bigrailroadblues on

    Tom, very generous measures. Doubt if I have ever been served those anywhere except abroad.

  6. !!Bada Bing!! on

    st tams- i think anyone who plays there is banned from both Tours,and The Ryder Cup

  7. TOM MCLAUGHLIN on 7TH JUNE 2022 3:43 PM

     

     

    BRRB

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    I was in an Leith working men’s club last week watching Scotland v Ukraine. I was there by invitation and it was my first time in the club. The pints were very cheap, but what amazed me was that spirits were served up at 35ml.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    I was later surprised when I tried to buy my host a double whisky and was politely told as it was 35ml they didn’t serve doubles.

     

     

     

     

     

    Is this the law or was it just the club’s own rules? I didn’t think to ask and it wasn’t until the next day I began to wonder.

     

     

    ——-

     

     

    Been a while since I worked in the industry, but the standard in Scotland is/was 25ml.

     

     

    Thereby a double in there would be 75 ml, and you are only allowed to serve a triple if you have a cocktail licence.(like a fancy hotel)

     

     

    You can, of course purchase yourself and pour them together, but they aren’t allowed to pour/serve a triple measure.

  8. PRESTONPANS BHOYS on 7TH JUNE 2022 3:45 PM

     

    What’s the story about this imperial stuff??

     

     

    ##

     

     

    It’s a Brexit freedom.

     

     

    We are now allowed to use Imperial measurements, if we so wish.

     

     

    No doubt will be used to disguise price rises.

  9. Paul67 et al

     

     

    if the figures you use are in anyway near correct Paul, and you are the guy on the other end of the bat phone, so reason to doubt them then I for one would not blame the Rangers for fixing the retail price and maximising the profits to be made. And far from focussing on rulings by the Monopolies Commission as was, I would be addressing my ire towards our very own shirt makers and sponsors, Adidas, for selling us our own Celtic shirts back to us at top dollar prices, okay £60 in imperial, whilst paying peanuts to women working in second and third division (state) capitalist economies.

     

     

    Bring back Umbro

  10. Tom McLaughlin on

    MARTIM1980

     

     

    Interesting.

     

     

    Back in the 80s, working in Glasgow City Centre, we used to frequent the bar of the Albany Hotel. For a while they had a happy hour every night between 5pm and 7pm. Pints and bottled beers were half-price, but when it came to spirits, they served up doubles for the price of a single.

     

     

    Problem was, they weren’t telling customers that their spirits were doubles. Eventually they were reported to the licensing authorities and were shut down pending investigation. They re-opened after a couple of days but no more doubles unless specifically requested.

     

     

    In those days you could have a couple if pints or a couple of spirits and still be under the driving limit. However, some customers were driving, thinking they had consumed 2 measures of spirits when they had in fact had 4.

  11. Tom,

     

    What time period did you drink in the Albany.

     

    A friend of mine was food and Beveridge manager and another bars manager ,was a stop off for beer on way home from Uni.used to go to the St Andrews boxing nights,sit up in the managers gantry and watch all the fights thro the one sided viewing glass.

     

    Good Times

     

     

    HH

  12. Tom McLaughlin on

    AN TEARMANN

     

     

    It was the downstairs bar – The Cabin – entrance in Blythswood Street and I drank there circa 1985-89 when I worked in Bothwell Street.

  13. Tom McLaughlin on

    AN TEARMANN

     

     

    I attended a couple of Albany boxing nights when my boss sponsored a couple of bouts. Great nights.

  14. fieldofdrams on

    This from the Daily Record, about the woman who’s been arrested for braining a Polis with a glass bottle in George Square:

     

     

    “A mum hit a police officer with a glass bottle during the Rangers title party.

     

     

    Stephanie Donaldson, 30, hurled it at an unknown officer who formed part of a cordon in Glasgow city centre’s George Square on May 15, 2021.

     

     

    Hundreds of jubilant Gers fans had gathered earlier that day to celebrate the club’s first Scottish Premiership title win.”

     

     

    The club’s first Scottish Premiership title win? I’m confused. I thought they’d been ‘going for 55’ and they were the ‘same club’. Must have got that wrong then.

  15. Martim at 4,03

     

     

    Not sure if measures in Ireland & Scotland are different but I know in Ireland a single whiskey is 35.5 ml & a double is 71 ml.

  16. Saying that I was in a pub in Lanzarote a few weeks back & ordered a Jameson with no ice,

     

    Barmaid just poured whiskey in without a measure , It was a massive glass of whiskey, I drank it obviously but I didn’t order a second one, maybe I’m a wimp but I like to know how much I’m drinking.

  17. bigrailroadblues on

    Good evening all from the Tolbooth. I may have strayed off course. 🤔

  18. prestonpans bhoys on

    BRRB

     

     

    Actually just out the sauna and by the indoor pool, opens my bag and pulls out a box of red, to the glaring eyes of every one else👍👏

  19. Tom.

     

    Yeh The Cabin bar,watched a lot of Mexico in there.

     

    Most Fridays for happy hour.

     

     

    HH

  20. bigrailroadblues on

    Prestonpans, good lad. Sauna, indoor pool? You in the Bahamas or Northumberland?😂

  21. CardboardCSC on

    200 million bucks for hitting a wee ball with a stick round a park ☺

     

    As a good mhan on here would say

     

    Dearie me. HH 🍀

  22. Tom McLaughlin on

    AN TEARMANN

     

     

    Used to drink in

     

     

    The Cabin

     

    Admiral

     

    Alhambra

     

    Foucquets

     

    Cafe Noir

  23. Celtic seem very active in tidying up the squad numbers, it appears a raft of the younger Bhoys, Patterson, Coffey, Connell Afolabi & Dembele are all being released & obviously Henderson is gone to Hibs.

     

    Now Barkas is gone for the year at least & Scales has been strongly linked to Aberdeen.

     

     

    There are still a couple of obvious targets, like Bolli, Ajeti & Soro & question marks over Shaw & Urhoghide plus the mystery man, Johnny Kenny,

     

    Johnny arrived injured and has hardly got a mention anywhere since.

     

     

    However it is apparent that someone at Celtic Park is working overtime to trim the fat, as long as this is followed by some shrewd additions to squad, then happy days.

  24. TOM MCLAUGHLIN on 7TH JUNE 2022 4:15 PM

     

    CORKCELT on 7TH JUNE 2022 4:59 PM

     

     

    Some mad stories of licenced places back in the day.

     

     

    Techniques by the licencing boards visting and pouring into their jacket to a container and doing measurements.

     

     

    Spain appear to have a free pour rule. I think measurement rules so strict here due to heavy duty and tax maybe…

     

     

    Corkcelt, yeah the rules aren’t international, I believe Ireland’s would be different to uk and Scotland has different laws in addition.

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