Four months ago we started rebuilding the stationery department at our Forest Hill location. The project has delivered year-on-year growth of 29% in revenue from stationery for October, November and December.
The growth can be tracked back to immediately after the rebuilding project was completed.
We quit a ton of old stock, reduced range in some categories, increased range in others and focused more than ever on national brands. The net profit benefit of the project is extraordinary – it paid for itself including labour and capital investment in the first quarter.
In undertaking this project we have exerted more management control over stationery, as retailers and not as servants of a wholesaler or any other party. We dis our research and backed our own judgment and it has paid off. Crucial, in my view, to the project was that it was undertaken by someone who was not store blind to the stationery department in our newsagency.
We are now implementing the same strategy at our Frankston location but with attention focused on the needs of that demographic.