If sales data I am seeing is anything to go by, UFC magazine has had a good first three days of sales.  In one of my stores we sold out of the initial allocation within 48 hours and are now well into the additional allocation.

While not a MasterChef magazine launch – because the UFC TV brand is not as big here as the MasterChef TV brand – I expect sales for the launch issue of UFC to meet the publisher’s expectations.

I’d encourage newsagents to support the title with prime space allocation for at least the first two weeks.  This is how we are getting our sales – from the front of the store.

Riptide is one of those magazines which often flies under the radar. Riptide is Australia’s dedicated body-boarding magazine and does not have the profile of other sports magazines. However, it’s sales are on the rise. Targeted at Males between 14-28 years of age, Riptide is one of those titles which can be purchased on impulse. It is also a good birthday gift suggestion for a parent or grandparent looking for something different. Issue #180 of Riptide went on sale last week and includes a DVD called “The Lackey Project”. This DVD gives stores a reason to feature this issue. The publisher is encouraging newsagents to look at sales as some a re reporting sell outs already. Gordon and Gotch has additional stock available.

We like many newsagents received a certificate of appreciation from the Better Homes and Gardens team at Pacific Magazines. Congratulating us on our efforts for the title and the sales achieved.  This recognition is appreciated.  The certificate itself is something we can proudly display at the counter.  This is the type of thing customers will notice and comment on. It helps to differentiate our newsagency from others who have missed out on the certificate.  Thanks Pacific.

I was fortunate to receive a preview copy of UFC magazine last week and have a good look through the launch issue.  UFC will have a broader appeal than I suspect many newsagents would think.  While the logical place for the title will be with sports magazines, I think it would also perform well in good impulse locations where it will be seen by a broader cross-section of shoppers.  we plan to co-locate the title: next to our top selling newspaper for a few days and then as the Magazine of the Week at the sales counter.  This is in addition to high profile launch activity with an aisle end display facing into the dance floor.  We will be offering one lucky customer a gift pack of UFC merchandise.

Any magazine launch is welcome.  The launch of UFC magazine is especially welcome given the extraordinary interest in the UFC franchise here and the planned spend by ACP in promoting the title.

The small footprint impulse display unit we received for promoting Better Homes and Gardens is getting a fair work out in my newsagencies.  We keep moving it to hot spots around the shop rather than anchoring it in one location.  The stand is small enough to sit at the sales counter, next to the newspapers, at the front door or even next to any display on the dance floor.  By moving it every few days we can combat store blindness from customers and, hopefully, attract more impulse business.

I prefer display units which can be moved.  This way we can more easily present a fresh experience to regulars.

Caravan World magazine is one of those titles which is not featured all that often in merchandising displays.  We are giving it some attention with an  in-location display this week.  All we have done is make a few copies of the cover and fan those our atop a double half waterfall of the title.  It’s a simple yet effective display.  People walking down this aisle will see this display half way down and, hopefully, browse the title.

We can’t promote all titles in high traffic front of shop locations.  these in-location displays are designed to make shopping the magazine aisles more interesting.