Illegal fund-raising10 billion
It is mentioned in the proposal: "According to the incomplete statistical investigation of the Association, Lotte Supermarket illegally collects high store entrance fees and bar code fees of nearly10 billion yuan in China. These illegal charges seriously violate the provisions of the "Measures for the Administration of Fair Trade for Zero Supply" of the five ministries and commissions. " Article 13 of the Measures for the Administration of Fair Trade in Retail Materials stipulates that retailers shall not charge or charge the following fees in disguised form: 1. Fees charged by suppliers who have obtained commodity bar codes in accordance with relevant state regulations and can normally use them in retail places; 2. Charge the suppliers who use in-store codes a bar code fee that exceeds the actual cost. According to relevant regulations, illegal charges need to be refunded in full. The association hopes that the suppliers of Lotte Supermarket nationwide will report to the local industrial and commercial departments and pursue all illegal charges from Lotte Supermarket.
In this regard, beijing business today reporter today contacted Yao Wenhua, president of Beijing Supermarket Suppliers Association. He said, "At present, nearly 50% of the supplier members of the Association have jointly initiated a proposal, and most suppliers have indicated that there is a problem of excessive fees. We suggest that all suppliers of Lotte Supermarket stop supplying to Lotte Supermarket from now on and immediately recover the payment! "
Another supplier, who did not want to be named, also told beijing business today Today reporter, "Most supermarkets actually charge entrance fees and bar code fees, which is an unspoken rule in the industry, but Lotte Supermarket does have the problem of excessive fees. Take the department store we supply now as an example. Lotte may charge tens of thousands of yuan for entering the store, while other supermarkets only charge several thousand yuan symbolically. "
Regarding the problem of arbitrary charges in the proposal, beijing business today reporter also contacted Lotte Mart Supermarket today, but as of press time, the front desk of Lotte Mart headquarters and the official complaint telephone number showed that no one answered.
Hidden rules of store entry fee
Store entry fee and bar code fee have become the hidden rules of retail industry. An industry insider told beijing business today Today reporter, "The admission fee is actually equivalent to a ticket or admission ticket, just like you need a ticket to watch a movie or visit a tourist attraction. In many cases now, if suppliers don't pay the entrance fee, the supermarket won't sell your products. " The entrance fee has become the practice of many supermarkets. According to industry insiders, many supermarkets keep their profits to a minimum in order to compete, so they can only get relatively meager profits, so they hope to make up for it by charging for entering the store.
In addition, for the concept of bar code fee, Baidu Encyclopedia defines it as "new product shelf fee", which means "before a commodity needs to enter supermarkets, convenience stores and other retail stores, it must pay the entrance fee corresponding to the commodity". However, some people compare these expenses to commercial bribery.
Qiu, director of the Consumer Rights Legal Affairs Committee of the Beijing Lawyers Association, said in an interview with beijing business today today that the store entry fee is not the same as commercial bribery, which is a suspected criminal act, while the store entry fee is an unfair competition act, which damages the legitimate rights and interests of other operators by taking advantage of its monopoly position. Even many entrance fees are clear and reflected in the contract. If this fee is given to others privately, then this behavior belongs to commercial bribery.
Lotte on the cusp
It is understood that the Beijing Supermarket Supply Association is not the first organization to protest. On February 28th, Hefei Acorn Refrigeration Equipment Co., Ltd. issued a statement: From February 28th, it will no longer provide cold chain equipment to Lotte Mart supermarket chain in any form. The supermarket cold chain equipment library developed, designed and produced by our company will be dismantled or destroyed, and the drawings will be sealed. The sales price of equipment in the surrounding supermarkets can be reduced by 5%. Verified by beijing business today reporter today, this notice was indeed issued by Hefei Acorn Refrigeration Equipment Co., Ltd.
Hong Tao, director of the Economic Research Institute of Beijing Technology and Business University, said that the retail industry in China is currently in a buyer's market where supply exceeds demand. When a product enters the sales network, it will have good economic benefits, so manufacturers hope that the product can be sold soon; On the other hand, the current sales network is mostly a chain operation mode, which requires a lot of capital investment; Thirdly, after the products enter the retail network, they need certain costs in terms of import and export, logistics, distribution and sales, and there will be corresponding expenses, most of which are on manufacturers and suppliers. From a commercial point of view, it is reasonable to collect tickets. However, regarding Lotte's behavior of charging high store entry fees, Hong Tao said that compared with the input cost, high store entry fees should not appear, and corresponding laws and regulations should be applied to restrain this behavior.