Australian Newsagency Blog

The Independent has published an interactive map which is reflective of the debate around the future of newspapers.  By interacting with the map you are able to navigate the diverse views and through this develop a better understanding of the challenges faced by today’s newspapers.

This excellent map is a fascinating tool, especially for people still […]

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Folio reports that 275 US and Canadian magazines have closed so far this year.  In the same period, 187 new magazines have launched.  525 US and Canadian magazines closed in all of 2008.
if you are planning a shop fit, do not include purpose built magazine fixtures.  Go, instead, for flexible fixtures which can be easily […]

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John Hartigan, chairman and chief executive of News Limited, yesterday spoke at the National Press Club.  Click here for an extract from his speech as published by The Australian this morning. Hartigan’s case, in my reading, is more about the future of publishers and journalists they employ than the print newspaper medium:
Instead of throwing a […]

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The Norwich Evening News ran a story yesterday about the challenges facing UK newsagents.  The story reports that they are closing at the rate of one a day in the face of tough competition from national retailers.
While I understand the pitch of use us or lose us, consumers will shop in newsagencies only if they […]

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Newsagents will be interested to read Digital Britain, a 245 page report from the UK Department for Business Innovation & Skills which lays out plans for Britain to take a leadership position as a digital knowledge economy. At the heart of the plan is a distribution channel which imagines less paper based communication.
This report is […]

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I noticed reports that JB Hi Fi announced that it will open around 50 smaller format stores.  This is an interesting move.
Newsagents face a challenge around size, especially in shopping centres where landlords tend to want us to take 250 square metres and more.  If we take that size of space we need a broad […]

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Fox Business has published another video interview with Rupert Murdoch in which he talks about, among other things, newspapers.  He makes interesting comments about migration online.  Check it out:

Reuters has several quotes from Rupert Murdoch including this about newspapers:
“Communications are changing totally and we’re moving into the digital age and it’s going to change newspapers. […]

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Advertiser Newspapers announced to South Australian newsagents Monday their plan to take over managing home delivery accounts for Advertiser products. They will gradually assume control for starting new home delivery accounts, collecting payment, managing stops and starts, handling holiday redirections and handling queries.
This significant and unexpected move by the publisher has been pitched to […]

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At the ABC’s 7.30 Report website is an excellent extended interview with former journalist and Crime novelist Laura Lippman about the demise of newspapers in the US. The interview provides an excellent back story to the impact the Internet and corporate takeovers on newspapers. I especially found Lippman’s comments about newspaper publisher interest […]

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The median age of magazine readers in the US has risen greater than the population accoring to research just published in the US.
Since 2001, 64 out of 90 leading consumer magazines have seen the median age of their readers increase faster than the population at large, according to a MediaPost analysis of the latest figures […]

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In reviewing online content as part of research on the newsagency of the future, I discovered an excellent review of a WH Smith store by Steve Haywood.
I used to love going to WH Smiths as a child - I lived in a small town that wasn’t big enough to have a Smiths, so it was […]

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News and Fairfax are said to being close to putting new distribution contracts to newsagents for their consideration. The current contracts were negotiated in 1999 as part of the process of deregulation of newspaper and magazine distribution in Australia.
While newsagents and those who represent them will focus on the terms of the proposed contracts, […]

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We are experiencing the value of marketing outside the shop with the latest Hot Ink! campaign.  Customers are bringing in the brochure in with the products they want already circled.  The Brother $20 cashback offer is popular as is the exclusive coupon offering a 10% discount off a second cartridge.  As we find each time […]

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I spent time yesterday at the Reed Gift Fair in Melbourne looking at product for our shops, catching up with some newsagents and checking in on the Tower Systems stand.
There were plenty for products suitable for newsagents who want to expand their gift range. This is a view shared by other newsagents I talked […]

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Several newsagent suppliers have asked if they can alos attend the 5 WAYS TO KICK START YOUR NEWSAGENCY workshop which starts on February 9.  The answer is yes!  The ore we talk collectively about growing our newsagencies the better.  So, suppliers are welco.e  that said, we will start closing off registrations for this free workshop […]

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The ANF and some others complain that my opinion gets more attention that it should for one newsagent. Over the last two weeks I have met with more newsagents than I suspect any ANF Director has all year. I have been crisscrossing Australia participating in the Spring User Meeting Tour being run by […]

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Reports like the one you will find here in The Press and Journal appear almost daily somewhere in the UK, reporting the closure of a local newsagent. It concerns me that complacency here in Australia - individually and collectively - could see us see these stories appearing in our newspapers here. Economic challenges, […]

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Mag Nation, the innovative magazine retailer was recently named the Best Young Business in Melbourne for 2008 - by the Business 3000 organisation at their recent awards..  Far removed from a traditional newsagency, the folks at Mag Nation pursue magazine range relentlessly.  In addition to magazines, Mag Nation shops sell coffee.
I have been to Mag […]

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Giant US retailer demonstrated a couple of days ago how much the world had changed when they opened for business in Australia. No tens of millions invested in traditional infrastructure like shops, no they opened a website offering good value product. This is exactly what News Ltd and Fairfax have been doing […]

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I am thrilled with the response to the TV campaign for newsagents which I announced here last Friday.  Newsagents are pleased that their shingle will feature on a wide variety of TV channels.    What is needed most right now is photos of happy newsagnts standing in front of their shops and counters.  The more of […]

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Embracing Change is the theme of the inaugural newsXpress conference on the Gold Coast in September. The agenda packed with presentations focused on practical advice for newsagents.  Peter Sheehan, author of the book excellent Flip will present the conference Keynote speech.  I read Flip earlier this year - it speaks to newsagents and the challenges […]

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Scott Karp has written an excellent piece about what newspapers could learn from the General Motors decision to transform their business around producing a commercially viable electric car. The connection between the GM reinvention and newspapers is covered in this paragraph:
All the talk about “saving newspapers” is focused on finding new business models to […]

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92 people voted in the poll about sub agents. 42 said NO, 32 said YES and 18 said as a RESTRICTED MEMBER.
Newsagents who feel strongly either way on this ought to put their thoughts to their associations as I know this is a topic being discussed at the moment. Associations cannot reflect the […]

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Newsagents in Melbourne ought to find time to get to C-Store 2008 at the exhibition centre today or tomorrow.  Tower Systems has a stand and I was in there today to check out the event.  C-Store is an excellent trade show for newsagents because it presents new product opportunities and better ways to merchandise traditional […]

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EconCeleb 2008 is a one day conference in Los Angeles today about celebrity content, how old and new media can monetise this and how content is distributed. It’s the kind of conference I’d love to attend because it would provide an excellent insight into trends which are sure to impact magazine sales in […]

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