We have had our Valentine’s Day cards out for more than a week and already we are seeing good sales. We have them facing the dance floor – in a high traffic location. While the big sales will be the week before February 14, I am very happy winning good business from the more organised Valentine’s Day shopper buying the cards at the moment. We have a small selection of Valentine’s Day gifts out, more will arrive later this week.
Down here in Victoria I suspect that we have little idea of what life if like for newsagents in the flood affected areas of the country. I certainly feel ignorant. I mean, I have seen the TV footage and have spoken with newsagents with businesses under water.
What I have been ignorant about is the impact in areas not under water there are significant challenges. I have heard of plenty of newsagents who are able to open their businesses but who have no current stock. Transport routes have been cut – no magazines, no papers. There are other stories where shoppers cannot get into town so there is no trade, not even for lottery tickets and the like.
I heard of one newsagent who slept on the shop floor last night so he could open today. Extraordinary.
So, beyond the major stories on the TV news, there are plenty of other stories of these floods impacting businesses … and the situation looks set to continue for some time yet.
By trimming our magazine range in a couple of my newsagencies we are now able to better display full covers of top selling magazines. They react well (in terms of sales) to this attention – the covers are designed to sell the titles after all! We trim the space allocation for weekly titles as the week unfolds.
For monthly magazines we tend to allocate a full face line at the top of waterfalls and half waterfalls for a category, for a couple of weeks of the month – to give the category a boost. This also works well with a noticeable boost to sales.
Newsagents are often so crammed with stock that there is no hope of these displays being created. I am sure that this must stunt sales of top selling titles.
The federal government has been reminding parents this past week about the Educational Tax Refund. Newsagents need to read up on this too, especially exactly what can be claimed under this program. We sell plenty of eligible products.
This is an excellent opportunity at Back to School time for newsagents. Promoting this program in store and across the sales counter could help drive sales.
Engaging with a customer about the opportunity could be as simple as handing a customer a receipt and reminding g them abut the tax break opportunity. Smarter newsagents will promote this in their newsletters and through displaying the poster (the newspaper ad from the website) in-store.
UK music retail group HMV late last week announced the planned closure of 60 stores in 2011 citing tough retail conditions. Here is a tell tale quote from CEO Simon Fox from the company’s press release:
The pace of change in the markets in which we operate underlines the urgency with which we must continue to transform this business.
Hopefully, newsagents reading this blog post will see the importance of the transformation of individual businesses and the channel which I bang on about here regularly. Print is a few years behind music but it is on the same path. We know that from events of the last year.
On Monday I blogged here that of the cose to 3,000 newsagents with a newsagency Point of Sale system in their business, too many do not use the software its full potential.
This failure to use the technology means we have inefficient, unprofitable and theft risking newsagencies.
I laid out some straightforward steps newsagents could take to improve efficiency in and control over their businesses.
I’m glad to report that many newsagents called me to talk about their next steps in improving their businesses in 2011. More need to act on this.
If you seriously want a more efficient, profitable and better newsagency, here are Here are the proven simple steps to saving time, cutting theft and reducing dead stock in your newsagency.
There can be no excuses. If you want to make the most out of your business (and why else would you be in business?) then following these steps is essential and urgent.
If doing a complete stock is too big of a job, consider starting with one department by implementing full stock control justin that part of your business. I promise you that the experience will drive you to do the whole store.
Newsagents who do not fully manage their entire inventory in the way I suggest are more likely to experience theft, more likely to make bad business decisions and will have much more money tied up in stock than is needed.
Newsagents who do not completely and professionally manage their inventory ought to get their own house in order before complaining about anything else impacting their business.
The Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas is always a place where suppliers test the waters with new products. They all look at each other, test what’s hat and what’s not and through the year the strong and smart prevail. If you do a Google search for Las Vegas CES you’ll find plenty of videos from the show floor, like this video of the Sharp Galapagos unit. This is interesting because of the demonstrators talk about books, and newspapers.
No, this device is not a game changer, just an extension of the game changing which occurred with the release last year of the iPad.
It is important that newsagents understand the extent of change in delivery platforms.
We continue to have good success with lottery syndicate sales, even in our small temporary location. The small A5 mini-posters which we have stuck on the pole holding the lottery terminal screens works a treat for us. It is terrific seeing a customer make a purchase and decide on a syndicate ticket as well as the items they brought to the sales counter. It costs nothing to make the A5 poster. In a one hour stint last week I saw four syndicate shares sold specifically because of this promotional placement. We change the syndicates we promote in this location regularly.
Syndicates are also promoted at our lottery entry table (workbench) as well as in a display behind the counter.
We are promoting Prevention magazine with this aisle end display. I see Prevention as another title which sells particularly well on weekends – especially in a couple of shopping centres where I have newsagencies. We see different shoppers on the weekend to our regular weekday shoppers. We are more likely to see irregular visitors to the centre – hence the opportunity of impulse purchases which reflect the traditional weekday product mix. This is another reason we do weekend only displays for some products.
The Los Angeles Times is reporting that more than 80 tablet computers were shown off or launched at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show this week.
I have written here for some years about coming disruption to print and that the key to this occurring is hardware based. What has been on show in Las Vegas over the last few days shows that we are closer than ever to a replacement for paper for many reading experiences.
Check out this video report on the CES by Wired magazine:
This disruption is an opportunity for newsagents. We can either embrace and ride the wave of change or we can stand still and wonder what happened after we have been dumped.
While I did not receive Street Commodore Power Pack I have heard from others who did. One newsagent opened the pack and scanned the barcode on the main title – Street Commodore Poster Book. They last received this exact product in 2007. It has just been reissued in 2011 and tarted up in a ‘value’ pack with a new barcode. Seriously!
So, did you receive this pack in your newsagency yesterday?
Magazine distributors who respect newsagents and are serious about being magazine distributors need to behave when it comes to product reissues – no matter how tarted up the reissue is.
We received this Google magazine yesterday … ten years too late. Okay there may be some late adopters who will pay money for a magazine on Google, but seriously how many will there be? Certainly not the quantity I have been supplied. I’d have taken five copies if I had a say, not this many. Every new title newsagents receive has to replace another title … otherwise we create displays where covers overlap and that takes us to the magazine layouts of the 1980s and that would be a bad retail move.
Magazine distributors have an obligation to consider the impact on newsagent space, labour and cash of these new titles they so readily ship to us in sometimes concerning volume.
Like many newsagents I am sure, we received these sticker sets published by Panini with our Network Services delivery yesterday. While they are on delayed billing, we have to find space for these non magazine items. Our counter is fully allocated. We don’t have a kids department. We tried them in the kids magazine fixtures and they get lost.
Before magazine distributors start spending our money (cash for the stock, rent, labour and shrinkage) on non standard product, they ought to get our permission. Yes, I know that I am dreaming. One day they will realise the damage caused by poor management of what they ship to our channel. I hope.
Many newsagents still do not have a gift department in their businesses even though gifts is one of the strongest performers in the sales benchmark studies.
Gifts usually deliver a better margin, drive good impulse business from existing customers and attract new traffic.
I know of newsagencies where the gift department is the defining point of difference department for the business – financially and in terms of Yes, the opportunity is considerable.
When I see a newsagency without a gift department and ask why, the most common answer is … I don’t know where to start. Here are some tips on how to start with gifts in your newsagency…
There is no doubt that creating a gift department has its challenges. It is a significant step away from the protected world of sale or return retailing. You need to be prepared to back yourself.
I have seen newsagents take a couple of years to access a reasonable return. Others have been successful almost immediately. It all depends on the work you put in prior to making your move and the extent of your investment.
Gifts present an excellent growth opportunity for newsagents and a good use of space reclaimed from older categories. Gifts also fit well with the consumer perception of the traditional Australian newsagency.
The marketing team at my newsagency software company Tower Systems has produced three posters newsagents could use in response to Gerry Harvey’s shrill about online shopping. Click on the links to access the three posters in PDF form: Gerry, Gerry2 and Gerry3. The posters have been created to tap into public interest in this issue as well as to remind shoppers that in businesses showing the posters customer service matters.
I hope that people embrace them with the humor with which they have been created.
We are promoting the latest issue of Better Homes and Gardens magazine following the successful routine which sees us selling out or coming close to selling out each month. The sell out usually occurs in the last days on the on-sale. In addition to the in-location display using the floor for the poster (we have no space above the magazine display), we also have four pockets on the title in with our women’s weeklies titles and a stack next to our top selling newspaper. The co-locations will remain in place for at least the first week of the on-sale. Better Homes and Gardens responds well to this additional activity. After all, sales are what matter most here.
When the wind is in their sales, nothing can get in the way of Gerry Harvey and his rich retailer mates. The moment there is a spoiler, they complain and call on the government to help.
Their current shrill campaign calling for the government to act is ill conceived and miscommunicated.
Yes, GST should apply to all items purchased in Australia regardless of whether they are supplied from an offshore warehouse or not.
Where the Gerry Harvey led campaign falls down is that Australians have no appetite for a rich head of a retail group which delivers poor customer service telling the Australian Government that they should be protected.
It is no wonder that there has been a shopper backlash against the campaign. The common thread of shopper complaints is that customer service sucks in Harvey Norman and other major retail outlets.
This is where small business excels. Small business retailers are more likely to offer friendlier and more knowledgeable customer service. Small business retailers generally live locally and hire local employees. They are better connected to the community.
A small business led campaign educating shoppers about the growing cost to their business of the free GST kick to overseas retailers would have a better chance of gaining grass-roots support and thereby engaging government in finding a solution.
The more Gerry Harvey and his rich mates are on TV complaining the more my small business retail friends can remind their customers of the difference between rich, big and bloated retailers and customer centric small business retailers.
I first published this earlier today at the Tower Systems blog. I am publishing it here as I think it is a topic which would interest newsagents.
Following my post in Tuesday about improving the business performance of a newsagency, I have received calls from newsagents keen to review and refresh their stationery offer. This is a good place to start as it is where I see many newsagents wasting considerable money in dead stock.
Newsagents usually end up with too much stationery stock when they allow suppliers to order for them, order using manual processes or do not apply tight management to the ordering process.
By ordering only what is selling and applying tight rules to new product opportunities, newsagents can expect to find their stationery stock holding reduce without any impact on sales. This frees up cash for use elsewhere within the business.
The challenge to moving from old practices to a profit focused approach to stationery will be a challenge for many newsagents as they rely on personal relationships with supplier representatives. For many, visits from reps are a welcome break in a busy day. While I understand the social value of the rep visits, there is a cost through oversupply which can diminish the return newsagents achieve from their stationery department.
With more competition in 2011 in stationery – the OfficeMax / Australia Post relationship and the full takeover of Corporate Express by Staples to name two – newsagents need to approach this year differently than in the past if they are to improve the performance of stationery. Improving stationery starts with ensuring that you have an efficient range on the shop floor. The best way to achieve an efficient range is to use sales data to drive reordering.
At the heart of this issue is years of habit. Our competitors rely on this and that many newsagents will prefer manual processes. Sure, we will say that we offer more personal service and better product knowledge than, say, Officeworks. No amount of personal service or product knowledge can help you move stock which should not have been purchased in the first place.
In situations where there is little useful or accurate sales data, newsagents can rely on sales data from organisations like GNS. Their top sellers list is an excellent place to start in building a successful stationery department.
Stationery is one of the few departments in a newsagency over which the newsagent has complete control. Use this and bank the results.
Newsagents who take stationery seriously usually find that they can increase sales by selling more of what sells. This creates the ideal win win. Be guided by your customers and this could be you.
Las Vegas is the place to be this week with the Consumer Electronics Show set to kick off. All the pundits are saying that this show will be about devices with the Apple iPad in their sights. This is exactly what happened five or six years ago just after the iPad was released and proven to be successful. This year’s show will be vital to the business plans of print and electronic media outlets as more devices re released which provide access on a vast array or portable high quality devices.
PC Authority magazine has been renamed and given a bit of a make over. It is now called PC & TECH AUTHORITY.
With computer magazine sales continuing to fall and gadget magazine sales in the rise, it makes sense to broaden the appeal of the title. We are responding to the change with more prominent placement with the gadget titles – away from the computer titles. This magazine will appeal more to browsers in this space.
The latest sales data shows that computer magazines continue to struggle. This makes sense – print is not the ideal medium for breaking news on new hardware. It is also not the ideal medium for advice as it is not searchable.
Several newsagents contacted me regarding receiving this Crazy Bones pack which they received yesterday. This clearly old stock (old price labels and damaged packaging) would not be acceptable to major retailers so why shove it out to newsagents. If I was sent this stock I’d return it immediately. It is appalling that newsagents have to fund the cost of return. While I have no way of knowing, it is as if the distributor wanted to earn the supply fee – to do that all they need do is ship the stock out. Pathetic.
What is the optimum magazine range for your newsagency? This question is more important in 2011 than ever before.
With magazine sales flat, publishers actively pursuing other distribution channels (tablet computers) and with the cost of retail space increasing, newsagents need to carefully consider their space allocation for magazines.
Magazines are vitally important to newsagencies in that the range we carry is, for many of us, our only point of difference. The challenge is that the point of difference comes at a considerable cost.
The poor margin on magazines, the continued gross over supply, the challenging rules around returning unsold stock and the poor business processes of the magazine distributors leave newsagents with a cost for the product category which is higher than for most other items in the store.
The financial and operational terms around magazines is one reason newsagents in shopping centres pay too much rent.
In considering whether to adjust the space allocation for magazines, newsagents need to thoroughly assess the following for their business:
The 2010 model of magazine supply increasing while retail sales are falling is unsustainable. Now is the time for newsagents to consider their space allocation plans for this year.
In my experience, the best way to reduce magazine supply is to reallocate space. Magazine distributors must respond if you advise that your magazine department is not as big as it used to be. In some states, there are channels through which newsagents can pressure the distributor to be compliant.
I would consider 600 titles to be the minimum range necessary in a newsagency to offer a point of difference over a supermarket. This would need around 700 pockets to reasonably display. Of course, there are newsagencies where the minimum range, given their location, should be 1,000 (or even more) titles.
The challenge for the newsagency channel is that if many newsagents do cut magazine range, magazine distributors may look elsewhere (Australia Post?)to keep their trucks full. They are freight companies more than they are magazine specialists. Having full trucks is the central goal of their business plans.
We each need to make the decision on the basis of what works for our business rather out of fear for how a supplier might react.
The space freed could be used for better margin products which are complimentary to existing newsagency product categories. Products like gifts, ink, books, a service centre or toys.
What magazine distributors will rely on is that most newsagents will not re-evaluate their magazine space allocation. These newsagents are happy with not having to take control of this part of their business, risk bringing in stock on a firm sale basis or to refit part of the store for what they will most likely see as risky business. They like the magazine model because they are told what to do and when.
Newsagents who do make a fact-based decision to cut magazine range and floorspace can expect to achieve a higher return for the magazine department as a result. This is good not only for the newsagency but also for magazine distributors and publishers.
Unfortunately, magazine distributors and publishers will not see it this way based on their past inaction on the magazine range and oversupply issues. There will be the usual fights over local titles versus imported titles, specialist titles versus spoiler product from larger publishers and the wringing of hands between the distributors who say they cannot work together to create an efficient title assortment for newsagents.
This is what has happened in the past. It is why newsagents need to take control of their own destiny as our suppliers will not do it for us.
The start of 2011 is the time for newsagents to act on the floorspace allocation in their business. I’d be happy to talk with any newsagents considering this, to look at the data necessary for guiding decisions and to share experiences. I have done this in two of my stores with success.
If I can help in any way I can be reached on 0418 321 338.
With net sales of less than twenty copies per issue, there is no justification for being sent 35 copies of this Mr Wisdom Sudoku title. The oversupply is a waste of paper and a waste of our time. While the publisher and distributor will have their excuses, such oversupply in unacceptable. The people spending my money should be more responsible.
We are promoting the 2011 Australian Open Program at the counter this week – chasing impulse purchases. This type of counter has worked well for us in the past. The next two weeks are an excellent opportunity for early sales. The display has been configured so that shoppers see this as they enter the store.
Magazine distributors and other key product suppliers need to move quickly to support newsagenst in Queensland newsagents affected by the floods. Here is what I suggest they do:
This is an opportunity for newsagent suppliers to show that they do care.
I am concerned that some suppliers may treat newsagents differently to their competitors.