UPDATED: Serious questions are being raised about the content of a media kit being distributed by publisher Derwent Howard, for a new technology magazine which they claim will be distributed in over 700 Woolworths and Dick Smith Stores. The magazine is set to go on sale in September.
The media kit which ChannelNews has in its possession after two vendors passed copies onto 4Square Media, claims that that the 127,000 print run magazine will be distributed in 435 Dick Smith stores in Australia and New Zealand.
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Now it emerges that 80 of those stores are branded Tandy and not Dick Smith according to a Woolworths spoksperson.
Dick Smith, which is 100% owned by Woolworths claims that they only have 247 regular stores and 33 large format stores as well as 69 stores in New Zealand.
The Dick Smith web site claims that there are “over 200 Company owned stores”.
The kit also claims that the magazine, with the tagline “Talk to the techxperts” will be distributed in 300 + Woolworths stores.
When ChannelNews spoke to Woolworths, a PR executive said “I was not aware that Dick Smith had 435 stores”.
A Woolworths spoksperson said that the magazine will appear in selective Woolworths stores however no decision has been made yet as to which stores the publication wil appear in.
When ChannelNews contacted Deborah Singh the General Manager of Dick Smith Stores her PA said “we have 247 regular stores, 33 large format stores, and 367 in total if we count Tandy branded stores”.
The media kit also claims that the magazine is being distributed via 4,500 newsagents however Australia’s largest magazine retailer Newslink who sell 50% of all magazines in Australia including via locations at all airports and key transport hubs, claims that they are unaware of the magazine and that at this stage they are not planning to sell the magazine in their retail outlets as it is not a “researched publication”.
ChannelNews has also been told, that earlier this week Derwent Howard Management contacted Media Connect, demanding that reference to Woolworths in a story they were running about the new magazine be removed.
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Nick Cutler a Derwent Howard executive said that he was unable to comment about the Woolworths claims being made in the media kit.
When asked about the Dick Smith store circulation Cutler said “I need to call Dick Smith now” he then hung up.
Currently several Tandy stores are being rebranded as Dick Smith stores.
The media kit claims that the first issue of the magazine will go on sale in September. A full page advertisment is $7,500 and a double page spread $16,500. Information on competitive magazines listed in the media kit are also wrong.
