Macmillan Distribution Services

Macmillan Distribution Services is one of Australia’s
largest book distributors.


About Macmillan Distribution Services

Macmillan Distribution Services (MDS) provides the Australian book publishing industry with world class, cost effective distribution. It is one of Australia’s largest book distributors and provides distribution services to Pan Macmillan, Macmillan Education and Palgrave Macmillan. In addition, MDS services a growing number of third party publishers.

MDS operates a national distribution centre located at Derrimut in Melbourne to service its customers within Australia and overseas. The services offered by MDS include:


Who are Macmillan Distribution Services?

Leading book distributor

MDS provides an efficient and cost effective service to the Macmillan Group and an impressive list of over forty third party clients. We handle over 30,000 titles which are warehoused at our National Distribution Centre in Melbourne. The centre offers effective warehousing over 22,000m2 which ensures the smooth operation of receiving, storing and distributing our extensive range of books.

Strong publishing background

MDS is a division of Macmillan Publishers Australia, which in 2004, celebrated 100 years as one of Australia’s leading publishing houses. Macmillan Publishers Australia operates in virtually all areas of publishing and publishing services, including education, academic, trade and, of course, distribution. The company is committed to both quality and progress and has been quick to embrace modern methods while building on its heritage and outstanding history.

Ordering made easy

We believe in making it as easy as possible to use MDS. Our Customer Services department is open from 9am to 5pm AEST every weekday. Furthermore we also offer an excellent range of electronic ordering facilities, to make electronic ordering as simple as possible.

...through EDI…

We are committed user of EDI (electronic data interchange) as well as receiving orders via FTP. Our highly sophisticated computer system talks to many major customers and suppliers using EDI, reducing errors on transmission and enabling speedy processing. Order acknowledgements sent by EDI provide customers with even more information about their orders.


Five reasons why publishers choose MDS

  1. Specialists in book distribution
    MDS handle over 40 publishers, from the smallest to the largest, who specialise in a wide variety of publishing including trade, academic, schools and children’s books.

  2. Experienced distributors
    For over 40 years, MDS’ customers have included bookshops, retailers, wholesalers and members of the public in Australia. MDS has a wealth of distribution experience including export to a variety of countries.

  3. Sophisticated picking & packing equipment
    The most up to date equipment, including Colby conveyor driven picking paths with Radio Frequency (RF) and Pick to Light (PTL) technology ensures a seamless order fulfillment process. Each carton contains a unique licence plate and is weight checked for accuracy.

  4. Structure to support business specific needs
    MDS has tailored its operations to meet the needs of new title release, inspection copy requests and growth strategies to meet the varying sales volumes. MDS has built-in growth capacity with the opening of a 6,000m2 extension in July 2007.

  5. Reliable and consistent service
    MDS service was recognised with receiving the 2001 Doug Beattie Award from the Logistics Association of Australia for having the best distribution facility in the industry. In subsequent years, MDS has grown and developed to the stage where in 2008 it will enter a new development phase with a major re-fit to its already extensive conveyor system.

Contact Macmillan Distribution Services