Childers business blocked from selling Thomas Cook’s Pure Western jeans

A complaint by a competitor 50km away has blocked a rural business from stocking its best-selling product, sending the business owner into debt and prompting calls from the business community for the ‘archaic’ arrangement to be scrapped.

Bundaberg retailer Kerri-ann Plowman said she has 'lost everything' after an exclusive supply arrangement with a competitor blocked her move back to Childers.

When Kerri-ann Plowman saw an opportunity to move her country outfitters store back to the Childers’ main street she grabbed it with both hands.

After first opening her store, Diamonds and Dust, in Childers in 2021, Kerri-ann relocated to Bundaberg in 2022, in the hope of growing the business.

But the move to a strip of shops on Barolin St opposite Hinkler Mall didn’t work out well, doing only $78,000 in trade after turning over $230,000 in Childers thanks to the steady flow of tourists along the Bruce Highway cutting through the town.

To make matters worse, Kerri-ann still lived at her Ban Ban Springs property, with the four hours on the road to Bundaberg each day taking its toll and taking her away from caring for her three-year-old son.

“So after doing a year here I thought ‘no it’s just not worth it, we’ll go back to Childers,” she said.

Two days before opening the Childers’ store, Thomas Cook told Kerri-ann she would not be able to stock the Pure Western jeans.

Kerri-ann tested the idea through a post in the Childers Facebook group asking if the community would support her store if she moved back, to which she received an “overwhelming response” from customers in Childers and further afield, including Hervey Bay, Woodgate and Gin Gin.

She then confirmed with her supplier, Thomas Cook Boot & Clothing Co., that she would be able to stock all the lines she had sold when the store was first in Childers.

After receiving their assurance, Kerri-ann leased a shop-front on Childers’ Churchill Street and announced the move to her social media followers, happy that she was on the verge of getting her life and business back on track.

Two days later, her hopes were dashed when her contact at Thomas Cook called to tell her she could not stock Pure Western jeans in the new store, her most successful line, constituting 90 per cent of her stock.

Pure Western jeans were Kerri-ann's most successful line, making up 90 per cent of her stock.

Kerri-ann said a competing store in Biggenden, Deb’s Country Outfitters, had called Thomas Cook to complain about her store’s return to the region.

Already restricted in what brands she was able to sell, the loss of the Pure Western jeans meant her plans to return to Childers fell apart.

“They took Pure Western away, which has all my Bling Jeans that I sell,” Kerri-ann said.

“I’m already restricted on stock over there; I’m not allowed certain brands, which I’m ok with.

“But then when they took my jeans, that leaves me with hardly anything.”

Kerri-ann found her Biggenden-based competitor’s objection to her re-opening in Childers hard to understand, given the two towns are 46km apart and serve different kinds of clientele.

“Childers is on the highway, Biggenden is inland,” Kerri-ann said.

“Anyone that’s travelling through is not going to go 46km inland for a pair of jeans.

“I can’t make sense of it.”

The owner of Deb’s Country Outfitters, Debbie Frampton, did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

A spokeswoman for the Office of Fair Trading said while exclusive supply arrangements were common and did not necessarily violate any fair trading laws, suppliers should publicise those exclusive arrangements in the interests of good customer service while not being legally required to do so.

An Australian Competition and Consumer Commission spokesperson declined to comment on the specific case of Thomas Cook’s arrangements with the two stores, but said “generally, businesses are free to choose whether they will supply or deal with another business”.

“A refusal to deal, or an exclusive arrangement, cannot breach competition law unless it substantially lessens competition in a market,” the spokesperson said.

“This competition test depends on the circumstances of each matter.

“If substitutable products are available, the conduct is less likely to affect competition.”

With the lease on the Bundaberg store ending on August 31, Kerri-ann has packed up all her stock and is in the process of making a costly move.

Kerri-ann’s main contact at Thomas Cook denied she was favouring Deb’s Country Outfitters over Diamonds and Dust by supplying the top-selling jeans to the Biggenden store.

“I have an exclusive arrangement with all my customers of some kind, all my customers are as important to me as one or the other,” said the supplier, who declined to be named in this story.

“I supply four or five brands (to Diamonds and Dust); we are a big company and we have a lot of brands and it’s on an individual basis.”

The supplier said she would “absolutely not” be publicising the exclusive agreements she has with her clients, including Deb’s Country Outfitters.

Childers Chamber of Commerce president Margaret Smith said while no issues had been raised with the Chamber, a 50km exclusion zone for any exclusive supply arrangements was “outdated and archaic” and called for Thomas Cook to arrange a mediation between the stores.

Childers Chamber of Commerce said a 50km exclusion zone for any exclusive supply arrangements was “outdated and archaic” and called for Thomas Cook to arrange a mediation between the stores.

With the lease on the Bundaberg store ending on August 31, Kerri-ann has packed up her stock and is in the process of moving to a new store in Bundaberg.

After being in the black before moving to Bundaberg, she is now in debt and has been forced to take a second job in a laser therapy practice to stay afloat.

“I started off with money, I poured everything into this and now I’m in debt and I’m struggling to get anywhere,” Kerri-ann said.

“I’ve pretty much lost everything.”