Ratio of independents to multiples (%)
Target: Any variation below 60:40 split (Ind/Multi) to be in line with national trend (National Trend: 57/43)
95%
of retailers say they are satisfied with Camelot's approach to the relationship.
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We want to hear what you have to say. At any point in this report you can comment on what is being said on any of our corporate responsibility issues.
Retailers
In running The National Lottery, we have a specific duty to make sure that everyone who is eligible to play our games has the chance to do so reasonably easily. We could not do this without the support of over 26,000 retailers that we work with.
96% of the UK population either live or work within two miles of a lottery terminal. Currently some 94% of all lottery sales are through our retail network, amounting to £4.6 billion last year.
The role of our retail partners goes wider than acting as an outlet for our products. They also act as advocates for the lottery and play an important role in making sure our games are not being played excessively or illegally by young people under 16, as we describe in more detail in Protection in retail.
We aim to build a close working partnership with all our retailers, whether they're big supermarkets, part of a chain of newsagents, an independent shop or a small village store. Our overall approach is in line with the national retail trend, reflecting the split between independent and the larger retail chains.
To maintain a strong relationship with retailers, our sales team makes around 170,000 individual visits to stores and shops each year. We put a lot of work into training retailers - particularly in how they can improve services to the public and help protect vulnerable players. Last year we trained 9,799 individuals, nearly 2,000 more than our target.
Given that, it's not surprising that many shops want to join our retail network. Every week, our postbag is full of requests from retailers for a National Lottery terminal. In fact, demand for terminals is currently outstripping supply.
As operator of the National Lottery our main objective is to maximise returns to Good Causes through ticket sales, whilst operating in a socially responsible way. Independent analysis, which is reviewed on a regular basis, shows that approximately 26,000 terminals is the optimal number to sustain our sales and ensure good access. For more information please read a leaflet we have developed on this topic.
Our system for selecting retailers is fair and transparent. We need to achieve the best possible sales in order to maximise returns to the Good Causes, so it's important we make sure our outlets are in the right locations for players.
Careful analysis goes into this. We maintain a database of around 100,000 potential retailers who meet our basic eligibility criteria. The sales potential of each outlet is assessed against 47 separate criteria, including current sales, projected revenue, customer numbers and potential demand based on market research and demographic data. We also obtain information from our Sales Executives who make recommendations based on the commitment and enthusiasm of staff, access and store standards. Every quarter the information is reviewed.
As only a few new terminals become available each quarter, we assess the entire retail estate (rather than a particular geographical area) to make sure we maintain overall sales and returns to Good Causes. If a lottery retailer closes down, the new terminal may not necessarily be located in the same area.