Thank you to the 107 newsagents trading under a variety of shingles and in a variety of settings (rural, regional and suburban high street) who provided sales data for this benchmark study. The only connection is that they use newsagency software from my POS software company. Their transparency will help many in our channel.

Retail sales grow in the Aussie newsagency channel in the first half of 2023.

Many newsagents who participated in the latest newsagency sales benchmark study have reported a good first half of 2023 compared to 2022.

While growth has slowed that there is growth at all is good news given the stellar results for the channel through the Covid peaks of 2020, 2021 and 2022 when retailers in our channel were essential and open.

The best growth is in non retail newsagency traditional categories such as collectibles, higher end gifts, homewares and self care.

Old-school retail newsagencies focussed primarily on lottery products, papers, magazines and convenience lines made up most of the less successful pool.

After comparing data from the businesses in the benchmark dataset here are the averages for business performance measurement points and categories, comparing 2022 with 2019:

• Revenue: Up 2.2%.
• Sales transaction count: Down 9%.
• Basket value: Up 6%. This is an incredibly important number.
• Items per basket: Up 4%. This is an incredibly important number.
• Average item value: Up 3%. This is an incredibly important number.
• Greeting card revenue: Up 3%.
• Magazines unit sales: Down 5%. This is an unfair measure because of the big difference between businesses, bigger than for any other category.
• Newspaper unit sales: Down 7%.
• Toy (incl. plush) revenue: Up 11%. 30% of those in the study have this category
• Gift revenue: Up 12%.
• Plush: Up 16%,. But this is not your every day low price point plush. rather it is plush bought for other purposes, often for an older person.
• Book revenue: Up 22%. 10% of those in the study have this category.
• Fashion: 50%. 10% of those in the study have this category.
• Stationery revenue: Up 6%. This is also an unfair measure because of the big difference between businesses, bigger than for any other category with the best reporting growth of 27%.

There is also interesting data within departments, like stationery and magazines:

• In magazines, special interest titles are the winners, often delivering double-digit growth.
• In stationery, everyday is patchy but special interest, fringe, stationery is doing very well. Journals are having a moment, with excellent growth recorded.
• In cards, lifestyle is terrific in some stores and poor in others. I think suppliers need to do more work here to understand the differences.

For a few stores I have done a deeper dive to look at the last 2 months. This was illuminating because for those stores, which all reported growth in the six months, reported flat results or a decline for May and June. Not a big decline, but a decline nevertheless.

My advice to any retailer right now is to run the business as if conditions are tough, sales are declining, and people are being more careful with their spending. Following that advice will not hurt the business. Indeed, it should achieve the opposite with you buying more carefully, promoting for new traffic more consistently and working to turn the stock you have at a faster rate.

Sightseer retailers will have stories to tell. Not is not a time to be a sightseer. Be ahead of the curve, the wave, the lava from the volcano, whatever image you have – and if it never catches you, you’re ahead, and if it does catch you, you’re ahead. But the sightseer, they’re done.

If you want better results it is up to you to act.

There is no one size fits all solution, anyone who says there is is wrong.

The first step is to understand where you are at, from the data evidence in your business. next, you need a plan. Then, you execute with clarity and commitment, and draw on the support of others who have done this.

I own newsXpress, a marketing group supporting newsagents. newsXpress helps with this. If it interests you, please email help@newsxpress.com.au or call Michael Elvey on 0400 331 055 – he’s not a sales person, he’s part of the team encouraging success.

Mark Fletcher
M | 0418 321 338
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-fletcher-tower/