Sanity is on the move, changing the range of products they offer and through this broadening the appeal of their business to attract new shoppers.
Look at their decision to introduce ABC Centres into their shops. This is a smart move as it helps them leverage the much-respected ABC brand on the back of their already well-established brand and retail footprint. Even more than that, the ABC move ushers into Sanity a range of products hitherto not available in their shops.
This move by Sanity is a reminder we need to be introducing products/brands that will attract new shoppers and thereby enhance the relevance of our businesses. The most beneficial move we can make is through suppliers we do not currently deal with – unless there are current suppliers expanding their appeal through fresh products and initiatives.
Being small and individually owned does not stop us making strategic moves such as this. It starts with a will to embrace, chase, change.
New traffic is vital to the future of any retail business but even more so with newsagents with existing traffic fading following the decline of several core category products.
I see it differently. I see this as a warning to make sure you make the correct decisions when introducing new products into your store. ABC is a declining category as a whole and Sanity is a shop losing its relevance. By introducing ABC in my opinion it is not showing how it is evolving but how it is trying to hang on by its fingernails by trying anything it can. Yes there are ABC products selling well but the customer perception will be that Sanity is trying to save itself anyway it can. And by taking over a line that has closed down its own shop fronts points to a bad business decision.
New traffic is very important but transforming your business in the view of customers is also important.
I am surprised Sanity has been able to survive so long given how much better (on range, on price etc) JB Hi-Fi is for the things Sanity sells.
I would never even think of going to Sanity to buy things like CDs and DVDs (even though there is one a few minutes walk away and the nearest JBs is a 20 minute bus ride)