Month: April 2012

Newsagents need to have a structured approach to quitting stock left over from seasons or specially purchased offers, so that shelves do not become cluttered with remnants.

Once a range is done, because it does not sell or because it has run its race, we put it through a four-week cycle:

1. The remaining stock is put in dump bins at 25% off.
2. The dump bins are moved and marked down at 50%.
3. The final price move is to a specific amount, $5, $2, $1 or even 50 cents demanding on the price of the item.
4. The final move is to either give the remaining stock away or throw it away. The ideal is to find a local charity happy for what you don’t need.

Four weeks and we are done. There is no point keeping old stock hanging around. It wastes space, provides a conflicting message and can be frustrating when you walk past it.

Your newsagency software should be able to help you with all this.

I’d encourage newsagents to document their markdown and exit strategy and train all employees in this so that they can follow the policy without having to refer it to you. Building this into the operational structure of the business will provide certainty and free you to concentrate on more important business matters than stressing over when to quit a range which is at the end of its useful life in your business.

The more consistent we are on these things the better for our business and those who work in it.

I’d be interested to read what other newsagents do about this.

Penalty rates were introduced in Australia back when the weekend was, well, a weekend, when the majority of the population did work Monday to Friday.  Now, with so many businesses open seven days a week, it is time to look at the penalty rate structure.

Overtime should be for people who work beyond the usual, or what is expected in their situation. A casual employee, a university student, working Sunday because it suits their schedule, should not get a 100% hourly rate bonus. They are not doing anything extra. retail businesses, like newsagencies, can’t charge extra to cover for the significantly higher cost on a Sunday. Indeed, the sunday penalty payment makes retail businesses worth less for these trading days.

I am watching the campaign by the banks on this issue closely. I am sure other newsagents are too.

This is not about trying to rip employees off. No, it’s a matter of making use that everyone is treated fairly. As it stands today, most newsagencies operating under management would lose money on Sundays.

Click here for a copy of the report released by the ANZ reporting 5% year on year growth for small business retailers in the twelve months to february. This same store retail sales data comparison is based on data harvested by the ANZ through a range of their transactional services.

Non retail businesses tracked 11.3% growth for the same person.

The retail figure of 5% is interesting since this is what ANZ will compare newsagents against. For years this didn’t happen because we were looked at as being protected.  Now we are just like any retailers.  This is  good thing.

Newsagents need to know their year on year performance data. If it’s below 5% for the year to february 2012 you have to look at what you have and haven;t done to create your result and set about making changes immediately. This goes to the core of what I am discussing in the Newsagency of the Future series.