It is said that the students pay more for the graduation ceremony, because if forced price increases, “anti-competitive” academic clothing monopoly position.
The Sunday Telegraph can reveal that London’s oldest tailor was accused of abusing its dominant market position in ceremonial Long Gown Dress suppliers.
Ede & Ravenscroft is an exclusive contract with 109 universities nationwide to file a complaint with market regulators as “elimination” and “preventing” competition.
Contract University insists that students must wear “official supplier” clothing, or not to enter the graduation ceremony.
These universities are paid commissions, and in some cases, most are 20% of robes, which can accumulate thousands of pounds from these arrangements.
The price of the dress ranges from £ 45 to £ 50, while the student’s photo can range from £ 30 to £ 150.
However, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) failed to investigate the claim.
While CMA declined to comment, the e-mails seen in this newspaper show that regulators are unable to act because of their “limited resources” and need to prioritize other situations.
CMA acknowledges that it has raised some “awareness” about the concerns raised, and the complaint raised “interesting questions”.
It added that the decision not to investigate was due to “administrative priorities that did not reflect the substantive view of the case.”
The paper’s data show that Glasgow Caledonian University receives a £ 25,000 commission per year from the Ede & Ravenscroft network, and the University of Lancaster receives about £ 19,000 from its arrangement.
The complainant is a foreign foreign supplier and claims that as part of the transaction, the university often receives other incentives, such as providing “free robbery items for free storage and free manufacturing of expensive prime dress” for university staff.
They include college, receive free staff gowns, worth £ 30,000, photos and frames up to £ 1,000 per year.
The university also received 20% of the student dress commission, 50% of the photography committee.
Brunel, Essex and BPP are stated on their website, and graduates must hire all the components of the graduation garment from the supplier.
Complaints added that students missed out on cheaper prices and did not normally understand these incentives and would not benefit from the free services provided to their lecturers.
Robert Halfon, chairman of the Commons Education Select Committee, said the charges were “deep” and urged regulators to reconsider their positions.
He added: “Any advice on the advantages of unfairness, or the few people at the top of our higher education system relish, and many students in the economic difficulties.”
Regulators need to conduct an early investigation to investigate the substance of the content and to develop a clear plan of action. ”
Although the British University asked for a contract to tender, the complainant considered that these arrangements made it difficult for any competitor to gain a foothold in the market.
They added that the price of the graduation ceremony was a major factor in preventing students from attending the graduation ceremony.
They estimated that only 58% of the students actually graduated.
Students at the University of Bristol want to rent a graduation dress and buy a basic photography suit from Ede & Ravenscroft at a cost of £ 75 and the highest price to £ 200.
Ede & Ravenscroft insists that students hire a whole set of dresses, hats and hats, which means that some elements of cheap substitutes can not be used.
Oxford and Cambridge are considered to be the only university in the country to arrange with multiple suppliers.
Two Oxford-certified retailers charge only £ 9.99 undergraduate robe and £ 7.99 mortar.
A spokesman for Ede and Ravenscroft said it was operating in a “highly competitive market”, denying that claiming its success was due to the student “having the obligation to do business with us”.
“Students have the right to choose from where they hire or buy academic dress.
“We operate in a competitive market and sign a contract with the university through the appointment process.”
“We won the tender for our competitors because of our competitive prices and our service to students on the day of graduation.
“Of course, we did not succeed in all the tender, because we have a strong competitor, and sometimes won our contract where the normal operation of the market.
“The fact that we are bidding and winning a contract for school faculty to provide academic clothing does not mean that students are obliged to do business with us.
“As a long-established family business, we have invested a lot of money to ensure that sufficient inventory levels provide the right academic cost for all graduates.
The cost of making a dress for any university may cost more than £ 250,000.
“We are very concerned about quality and value, and we are proud of our traditions and how we invest to maintain the competitiveness of the modern world.”