Buying a business with a lottery terminal - easy to transfer?

MortgageChallenge2011

Hi all, I'm after some advice on lottery terminals.

Looking at buying a small newsagency outlet from a quite a large respected chain of newsagents. They are selling off the small outlets which they cant convert into post office / convenience stores.

It currently has a lottery terminal and my question is when the business sale goes through does anyone know how easy it is to transfer the lottery terminal to my business. The lottery forms quite a large income and I dont want to go through the sale for National Lottery to say I have to apply and wait or possibly lose it etc etc as the agreement was with the previous company. I have tried calling National Lottery but passed from pillar to post and someone will call you back.....

Many thanks in advance.

amboy

It is important for you to realise that there is no guarantee that you will get the terminal transferred to you and businesses should never use the lottery as a marketing tool for selling the business.

The current owner must give 3 months notice to transfer the terminal and you will have to go through various checks from Camelot to see if you are fit and proper (after all you will potentially have £000 of public money every week)

Are there any other businesses in the area that could be on a waiting list?

That said, if your history is clear and the sales figures for the existing shop are good then there is a strong chance it will be ok.

HTH

flexrider

hmm you better check this: (found on a website somewere sorry forgot the link)

Given the substantial contribution to a retailer’s overall income that having The National Lottery in-store can make, demand for lottery terminals unsurprisingly outstrips supply.
As well as commission on ticket sales and prizes paid out – an average of £8,000 for independent retailers last year – The National Lottery is a proven driver of both footfall and additional in-store spend. Research shows that one in five customers visit stores because they want to buy a National Lottery ticket. On top of this, lottery shoppers visit their store more frequently and spend on average 45%*
(* Source: HIM! CTP 2008) more than non-lottery shoppers, a figure that rises even more sharply between 5pm and 7.30pm on draw nights.
Taking all this together, The National Lottery can significantly enhance an independent retailer’s bottom line – especially when you take into account that minimal space is needed, there is very little maintenance and the only non-staffing cost involved in operating a terminal is the power needed to run it.
My weekly postbag is inundated with requests for terminals – and for advice on what retailers need to do to get one, how we judge them and the ways in which they can improve their chances of being selected.
So, to help you understand how we allocate terminals, I thought it would be a good idea to outline why Camelot has a selection process and what that process actually entails – as well as answer some frequently-asked questions and dispel a couple of myths along the way!

Why do we have a selection process?
As operator of The National Lottery, Camelot’s objective is to maximise returns to the Good Causes through selling tickets in a socially responsible way. In order to maximise our sales potential – and returns to the Good Causes – it is imperative we get the best return on each and every one of our lottery terminals.
This means having the right number of terminals in place and making sure that National Lottery outlets are in the best locations to offer the best sales opportunities – and therefore the best returns to Good Causes. Currently more than 96 per cent of the UK population either live or work within two miles of a lottery terminal.
We work with over 28,000 retailers throughout the UK, ranging from small independent shops to large supermarket chains to petrol forecourts; with independent outlets making up the majority. To ensure we are fair and thorough, the same criteria apply across all retailers regardless of area or sector – with each case being ultimately judged on its own merits.
Our expertise gained with almost 15 years’ experience of running one of the most successful lotteries in the world shows that the 'accurate' siting of a new National Lottery terminal can generate incremental sales of around 50 per cent. That’s good news for the Good Causes and good news for communities throughout the UK!

Our starting point
With information provided to us by independent external suppliers, we maintain a database of the details of around 100,000 potential retailers who meet our basic eligibility criteria and analyse the sales potential of each of these outlets.
So, if you qualify as a potential National Lottery retailer, the good news is that we’re highly likely to have your details on our system already and they will be reviewed on a quarterly basis to take into account any changes to our retailer network. We’ll keep them on file but you can also update us with any changes in your circumstances at any time – or ask for your details to be removed – by calling our dedicated retailer hotline on 0800 064 9649 or 0870 9080770. If you’re not sure whether we have your details, you can register your interest in having a lottery terminal on our dedicated website

How the selection process works
We analyse the sales potential of each of these outlets using a combination of market research and geo-demographic data, as well as additional information collected on an ongoing basis at ground level by our experienced sales executives. Based on their local insight, they provide recommendations that take account of factors such as the commitment and enthusiasm of staff, access to the outlet (including parking facilities), and store appearance and standards.
In all, we scientifically evaluate over 200 individual items of information and over 40 separate criteria – including current and projected sales, footfall, store size, access and potential demand – using a geo-demographic modelling system. This uses ‘heat maps’ to help us identify areas of the country that may be under- or over-supplied, based on estimated demand for National Lottery products.
Camelot’s Network Review Group (NRG) evaluates each selection nomination to identify which of them offers the best opportunity to maximise returns to the Good Causes. The NRG, which consists of three senior sales managers plus a dedicated Location Planning Analyst, reviews each recommendation against all of the selection criteria and discusses any justification put forward by the Camelot sales team. The group also takes into account any wider retail market trends which might influence the sales potential of the potential new outlet. The successful selection forms are then collated and passed to our Retail Services Department with instructions to begin the physical installation process.

Dispelling some myths
Contrary to popular belief, there is no ‘waiting list’ for a lottery terminal. So, if you don’t hear from us, it doesn’t mean that your outlet isn’t suitable – it just means that better prospects for generating incremental sales and returns to the Good Causes have already been identified.
There is also no stock of ‘spare’ terminals – deliberately so, as independent research shows that our current number of terminals is needed to sustain further incremental sales growth, as opposed to re-distributing sales around our retail estate. Any new terminal installations will therefore come from situations where an existing National Lottery retailer has, for whatever reason, had their terminal withdrawn.
Although only a few new terminals become available each quarter, we cannot – and do not – operate a one-for-one policy in selecting a new retailer. We have to assess our entire retail estate, rather than a particular geographical area, and select those retailers, as outlined earlier, who offer us the best opportunity to maximise sales – and therefore returns to the Good Causes. This means that if a lottery retailer in your vicinity closes down, you will not necessarily get their terminal. Conversely, if we believe there is sufficient demand in a particular area, we may select retailers close to one another.

Think lucky!
Each and every one of our retail partners acts as an advocate for The National Lottery, and they have played a pivotal role in helping to raise over £23 billion for the Good Causes. This money has helped to fund more than 317,000 lottery grants the length and breadth of the UK – the equivalent of 109 awards per postcode district. We will continue to work closely with them to build on this amazing achievement – and help them add further value to their businesses.
If we do select your store to become a lottery outlet, we’ll contact you with the good news – so think lucky!