This study was requested by the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Ms. Mary Coughlan, TD, on 25th February 2009.
The Minister’s request was made in the context of a recent Forfás report which suggested that “the fact that the strong euro does not appear to be translating into lower import costs may be indicative of a lack of competition in the import, distribution and retail sectors”.
The terms of reference were, to examine:
- how the retail related import/distribution sector operates and how competition works in that sector;
- whether any practice or method of competition affects the supply and distribution of goods within that sector; and
- the impact on competition within the sector of direct importation from source countries, rather than indirectly through the UK.
Submissions were invited from interested parties and the general public (see table below).
The Competition Authority completed this study and delivered a draft non-confidential version to the Tánaiste on 30th April 2009, as requested. The final confidential version was sent to the Tánaiste on 14th May 2009.
Changes to the Report since its publication
One change has been made to the text of the report since its publication on 30th June 2009. Appendix E mistakenly referred to “newspapers sold through newsagents” as an example of a retail agency agreement in Ireland. This has now been removed.
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Revisions
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| Para |
Revised Website Version |
Original Version (Website & Print) |
| E16 |
Examples of retail agency arrangements in the ROI include some international cosmetics brands that are distributed to department stores through agency arrangements. |
Examples of retail agency arrangements in the ROI include newspapers sold through newsagents, whereby the retailer is refunded by the supplier for unsold newspapers. The retailer does not take on the full financial risk of unsold stock. Similarly, some international cosmetics brands are distributed to department stores through agency arrangements
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