Retail Industry Criticizes Australia Post

The retail industry criticized Australia Post over its announcement that it is partnering with Tarazz.com.au to bring in overseas merchandise to the local market.

According to Margy Osmond, the move has disappointed the retail industry as it feels that Australia Post’s should give priority more to the Australian online retailers rather than overseas merchants. Osmond is the chief executive of the Australian National Retailers Association (ANRA).

A few days back, it was revealed that Australia Post would act as carrier of US clothing and apparel sold via Tarazz.com.au. Australia Post has guaranteed that it would provide cheaper delivery fees for the service.

Australia Post made the decision to get a bigger market share of goods coming in from overseas merchants. Statistics show that online purchases in the country have reached $11.5 billion in just the first semester of the year.

According to Australia Retailers Association (ARA), retailers are worried as the partnership would even make competition harder. As it is, the rise of the online retail has become a huge concern for many retailers.

According ARA chief Russell Zimmerman, the issue lies on the fact that the Australian government has chose to partner with an overseas vendor. He also called on local retailers to find courier services that would provide the best rates.

Temando, an online logistics and freight company, said it has received a significant volume of inquiries in the last few days. These inquiries center on cheaper shipping rates that would directly compete between Australia Post and Tarazz.

According to Carl Hartmann, he sees this spike as the final straw as many retailers are under extreme pressure to keep the business going. Hartmann is the managing director of Temando.