Malaga lottery retailers protest over commissions frozen for more than 20 years

Employment

Vendors say rising costs are forcing many outlets to the brink of closure

Matías Stuber

Lottery retailers across Malaga have joined a nationwide protest, with shop owners taking to the streets in Madrid to demand higher commissions on lottery ticket sales.

They say the payments they receive have remained unchanged for more than two decades, despite soaring operating costs.

The protest coincides with the launch of sales for this year's Spanish Christmas lottery and targets Loterías y Apuestas del Estado (SELAE), the state-owned lottery operator. Retailers want SELAE to overhaul the financial model governing Spain's lottery outlets.

The sector warns that commission rates, unchanged since 2000, are pushing many family-run businesses towards financial hardship because they earn such slim margins on lottery tickets. According to the national association of lottery retailers (Anapal), profitability has fallen by around 60%.

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