Who we are

We are an outsourced logistic organization that provides a fully integrated warehousing and delivery fulfillment service. We offer cost-effective, reliable, customer-centric logistic solutions.

Our philosophy

To expand and grow Stephan Phillips Logistics into a nationally competitive logistic business, offering customized and cost-effective solutions to our Publishing Partners, and the peace of mind that their books and receipts will be well managed through a professional warehouse team. To constantly seek competitive advantage through investment in technology, staff and expertise.

Our Key Services include:

• warehousing
• procurment and receiving
• stock control
• picking, packing, invoicing
• distribution
• delivery and tracking
• clearing and forwarding
• order processing
• order capture and processing
• contact center and customer care
• report and feedback on agreed upon performance criteria
• debtor management
• enquiry services

We pride ourselves on these Key Areas of Expertise:

• outstanding throughput times
• outstanding receiving and processing times
• nationally competitive delivery times
• professional care staff with exemplary customer service skills and customer query turnaround times

Facilities

We have warehouse facilities in Cape Town. This warehouse serves our national and international clients. We have showrooms in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban with our Library Supply Partner, Lesedi-Thabolong Media.

Pricing & Contract Terms

We do not have a fixed tariff, but offer pricing according to your service requirements. Stephan Phillips' contract terms and conditions are fully negotiable and depend on mutual agreement of both parties. Outsourced logistics should be based on openness and trust, be headache free and offer long term business solutions.

Our Philosophy

To build Stephan Phillips Sales and Marketing into a world class service business offering customized sales strategies and creative marketing services. These ambitions will be realized through a highly motivated, informed sales force with extensive footprint in South Africa and Africa. Further, customised promotions, comprehensive marketing plans, dedicated press relations, and professional account managers will add the necessary value that publishers require in a highly competitive bookselling environment. The realization that even the smallest publishers require a dedicated sales team, supported by cost effective, market tailored promotions and branding is at the core of our dynamic approach to selling and channel marketing. We approach each publisher as unique, requiring individualized solutions. This will be achieved by constant feedback with publishers, agreed upon performance criteria, constant market vigilance, and the active pursuit of partners servicing non-traditional environments.

Areas of Bookselling Expertise

• Art
• Design
• Architecture
• History
• Politics
• Current Affairs
• Fiction
• Literary & Mass Market
• Business Books
• Cookery and Wine
• Children's Mass Market
• Africana
• African non-fiction
• Mind Body Spirit and Self Help

Insight and Strategies

In general terms, the South African market is on par with New Zealand. Although South Africa contains a population of approximately 47-million, the reading public is extremely small. In a recent study commissioned by the Department of Arts and Culture and the South African Book Development Council titled National Survey into the Reading and Book Reading Behaviour of Adult South Africans , it is estimated that only 4 million South Africans are active readers and only a fraction of those are regular book buyers.

The most avid readers tend to be white, female and access their books mainly through libraries. The survey revealed that the prevailing perception that books were overpriced, or too expensive relative to other competing leisure activities, was a major consideration in driving buying patterns down. What to read and what to choose also surfaced as key downward driver of buying. Who does one trust with recommendations? These factors combine and significantly influence buying behaviour and explain why magazines and newspapers tend to be the most consumed products.

Significantly the study revealed the strongest promotion channels are:

• word of mouth
• promotions and displays in libraries
• review in magazines and newspapers
• store promotions and catalog promotions driven by chain bookstores

These trends probably follow international norms, but what differs in South Africa is the extent of market consolidation and lack of competition. The difficulty of reaching markets and driving buying behaviour is further exacerbated by the declining number of reviews in the general press and popular magazines in South Africa. Add to this the increasing number of books published and presented to buyers (and by extension consumers), and the market appears to be splitting at the seams with overproduction. In advertising speak the book industry is very noisy.

Bookstores (for the most part) in South Africa buy on a different model to most other countries. The major chains follow an 'Independent Model', whereby individual Store Managers are responsible for all purchasing decisions. These include frontlist and backlist titles. Further, they have no rules on the required ratio of backlist to frontlist, nor is their any defined core stock holding in place. This means that the South African book market is heavily frontlist driven, brand author obsessed, and subject to shareholders' desire for low stock levels generating the greatest cash, and therefore the largest returns.

If this sounds like a lament for old bygone models of Bookselling, it isn't!

Bookselling has been dragged into the modern era and transformed into BookRetailing, where FMCG retailers are revered and copied. Walmart, Star Bucks, Mc Donalds, Pick 'n Pay, Mr. Price is the new world, the standards and benchmarks upon which most retailers are now measured and valued. We are in the era of supply chain management, economies of scale, margin and stockturn! This very same imperative drives book publishing to a large degree.

This change has opened new doors whilst others have closed. It is true to say that buyers are more conservative. It is also true to counter this with the argument that publishers are publishing too much and soon we will be overwhelmed by books but underwhelmed by readers. It is a common understanding now that too much choice is not necessarily a good thing.

The South African book market is also dominated by a single chain of bookstores which wields unusual power in the market place. This chain, known as Exclusive Books, has an annual turnover of approximately $100-million. Interesting figures emerge in the Book Retail Industry Survey 2006 Report, which statistically estimates that 71.9 per cent of all recorded sales in South Africa are trade titles. Academic sales account for a mere 19 per cent whilst Educational sales crawl in at 9 per cent.

The regional differences are also very significant, with the three main provinces accounting for 85 per cent of sales. Gauteng, the economic hub of the country, home to the capital Johannesburg ( eGoli- place of gold) accounts for 45.6 per cent of all sales, followed by the Western Cape at 25.8 per cent and Kwa- Zulu Natal at 12.6 per cent. This roughly mimics the contribution to GDP and clearly equates book sales with greater wealth.

It is safe to say that at this stage Exclusive Books enjoys market dominance in these areas and is the most significant trade player.

It is in this context that representatives on the ground are essential. The caliber of staff, the frequency of calls, and the nature of their relationships with individual stores, their knowledge and integrity are key to our selling success.

Stephan Philips's representatives call on the 90 or more stores that order their books at the branch level. These calls average once a month.

We also visit and show relevant books to the central buyers of major chains and retailers. We view these buyers as key growth areas and key account manager are responsible for these chain stores.

Independent, Gallery and Boutique stores are beginning to occupy the spaces that traditional chains do not regard as profitable or large enough. They are mushrooming in certain metropoles and have added a new dynamic challenge to traditional retailing, and they provide the impetus for us to re-look and re-gear our selling strategies. These emerging platforms offer a great source of potential partnerships and synergies for books that may not necessarily find the space or consideration in larger chain stores.

It is within this challenging context that Stephan Phillips (Sales and Marketing) thrives.

We Recognise

• This unique business environment necessitates that book retailers are more conservative
• The key to marketing books in South Africa is through extremely good promotional material and review copies
• That the South African book market is price sensitive
• That book sales are ultimately driven through need
• That 'Word of Mouth' and 'Social Marketing' offer the greatest opportunities to drive this need
• That representatives' relationships with individual managers and their staff are the surest ways to business success
• That the largest footprint serviced to required criteria will dramatically improve results
• That the frequency of visits, and the presentation of professional material drive the relationship process
• That the above requires great staff, frequent visits to customers, provisioned with the right materials and knowledge, selling our publishers' books according to our customers needs

The South African government has also begun (after quite a hiatus) to fund state libraries once again. Due to government regulations, suppliers to these libraries have to be Black Empowered Enterprises. Stephan Phillips has a related partner company (see partners), specializing in library services in order to exploit this growing market. This is a market segment desperate for local books, and it is unfortunately extremely price sensitive. The operational imperative is, 'as many books for the ones buck as possible'. Libraries have been sorely neglected in the past, but if government intentions are realized then we should see a turnaround in this segment in the near future.

The above, however, is directly dependent on robust economic growth. The macroeconomic environment will see significant challenges over the next few years as we grapple with infrastructural challenges. The market is inherently volatile, and at present it relies on continued growth in both China and the United States of America to achieve its current overall economic performance, particularly in the Johannesburg/Pretoria metropole, which is heavily reliant on commodity sales abroad. Since most books are imported the key here is maintain price stability.

Given this Stephan Phillips Sales and Marketing will be:

• Focused on employing the best people who understand the importance of relationship selling
• Ensuring we cover all areas extensively in order to significantly grow our customer list
• Focusing strongly on increasing points of contact with customers
• Investing in promotions and customized point of sales
• Dramatically improving our press coverage and footprint in the media
• Finding the right partners who afford our publishers non-traditional access to buyers
• Exploring all new technological platforms for delivering the word on books, such as social networking sites and cell phones
• Offering buyers multi-choice buying platforms, from direct sales, to partner boutique stores and ones favourite local book store
• Partnering with the right Library, Academic and School suppliers books competitively

We are supported by an excellent distribution team in Stephan Phillips Logistics and look forward to working closely with all our Publishers and Partners, ensuring we reach our collective objectives.