Ofis has excess stock?
The Harvey Norman Ofis store in Mentone is flogging excess stock notebook computers on Melbourne radio today. I am surprised that the store which is not even two weeks old has excess stock.
Organising newsagents
As individual newsagents and state associations contemplate starting afresh with a national body representing newsagents, click here to see a copy of the constitution which was developed for the United Newsagents of Australia body Tom Carter and I proposed in 2005. The idea behind UNA was to create a virtual association, a lean secretariat office which focused on association matters.
Time Inc gets 15% from digital
The New York Post reports that Time Inc derives 15% of its revenue from digital activities. I’d estimate that less than 5 newsagents out of 4,600 would come close to this achievement.
Free WiFi at McDonalds
This is a smart move by McDonalds – free WiFi access in their stores. We did this in our newsagency three and a half years ago. I pitched it to Bill Express and the ANF at the same time. The opportunity was for newsagents to offer this network of free access and thereby drive more people to our locations.
Discounting magazines in retail
I was interested to see Newsweek being discounted by 14% at a Relay store at Hong Kong airport. Given the demographic of the excellent foot traffic it makes sense. They also promoted the 14% discount at the counter. This was the only title in-store with a discount.
I would be prepared to trial a promotion like this for appropriate titles here in Australia – if the terms are right and if the publisher did not use the promotion to drive subscription business. Burke’s Backyard is a good example of a title which could benefit from support like this. The discount could achieve good impulse sales.
Launch of Power magazine
Dymocks in the Princes Building in Hong Kong has an impressive window display for the launch issue of Power magazine. Rather than posters and the usual materials we use, they have gone for a less is more approach and let the title speak for itself. This is more in line with the location (a business building) and the general approach to magazine marketing in Hong Kong.
As for the magazine itself, timing may not work out to be that ideal for it.
Gift cards and magazines
This is smart – gift cards displayed in front of magazines. While we usually display card products at the counter in newsagencies in Australia, it is the magazine display which gets more eyeball attention – think of how long some people spend browsing. I took this photo at a 7-eleven in Hong Kong. With space so limited here, retailers are smart at embracing every opportunity.
We can easily embrace this for use in Australia.
Recycled magazines
This photo shows a range of products made from recycled magazines. They use a technique similar to that used for making household items from bamboo. The items I saw look and feel good. The environmental message is strong, especially in the magazine space. These are items which would fit nicely in a newsagency, especially if made out of magazines we returned. There were two companies at the trade show in Hong Kong with items made from recycled magazines.
New look Bookazine
The Bookazine group have opened a new smaller footprint magazine and bookshop in Honk Kong. The shop would be no more than 50 square metres. Notice the magazine display on the front to the left of the shop – around the corner from this is the main magazine display which is quite small.
I have seen Bookazine evolve over the last few years. This latest incarnation is the best. The smaller footprint has a lot going for it in a shopping mall situation.
I like the this shop – neat, easy to shop, feels like a specialist and not too deep.
Nice magazine display
The remodeled Dymocks at the IFC centre in Hong Kong has a nice and efficient magazine display. Triangular in shape, it packs a lot of stock into a small space, covering most areas of special interest. The fixturing looks like it is from Kleerex in Ireland. The lighting behind the fixtures makes covers pop – better than shown in the photo.
For a landlord like this…
These flowers were delivered to a retailer in Hong Kong to wish them luck with their re-opening following a re-fit. I wonder how many landlords in Australia would send newsagents and other tenants a nice flower arrangement for luck on the re-opening? I appreciate the culture here is different – but not that much. Australian landlords could learn from this and do more than chase their 5% rent increase every year.
Halloween in Hong Kong
This photo is from the entrance to a supermarket in Hong Kong. Their visual merchandising people have created a black tree as the centrepiece for their Halloween display. It looks stunning. There are many other displays here as good as what I saw at this supermarket – Halloween is big in Hong Kong.
We have been in Halloween for three years through newsXpress. It has grown every year!
Welcome news on the launch of The Week
It is a good move by the publisher to make the first issue The Week magazine available with a generous reward to newsagents – 100% GP. The value of this to our channel will be clear when we see how strong their pitch is for subscriptions in that first issue.
Software training for newsagents
Tower Systems is hosting a National Spring Newsagent Training and User Meeting Tour starting next week. Any newsagent is welcome to attend. The meeting will commence with a presentation on how to use the Tower software to increase sales and cut costs – smart business management for tough times.
The dates for the free training are as follows:
- Newcastle – Tuesday, October 28 – 10am*
- Melbourne – Wednesday, October 29 – 2pm*
- Sydney (Camperdown) – Thursday, October 30 – 10am*
- Sydney (Camperdown) – Thursday, October 30 – 2pm*
- Brisbane – Friday, October 31 – 11am*
- Melbourne – Friday, October 31 – 11am
- Canberra – Wednesday, November 5, 2pm
- Perth – Wednesday, November 5 – 10am
- Dubbo – Thursday, November 6 – 10am
- Albury – Thursday, November 6 – 10am
- Geelong – Friday, November 7 – 11am
- Adelaide – Friday, November 7 – 10am
- Cairns – Monday, November 10 – 1pm
- Gold Coast – Tuesday, November 11 – 1pm
- Darwin – Wednesday, November 12 – 11am
- Hobart – Wednesday, November 12 – 1pm
Click here to download the booking form for the Spring User Meeting Tour. Bookings can be made on bookings@towersystems.com.au. * – these are the sessions in which I am certain to participate.
Disclosure: I am the owner of Tower Systems.
ANF announces discussions on Bill Express debt
The ANF has sent a newsflash to members saying that they are in discussion with Pepper Homeloans and the Bank of New York about the Bill Express equipment rental agreements. I am suspicious of the timing of the newsflash given that the ANF opened these discussions three months ago.
Time will tell whether the announcement has more to do with retaining members than actual news.
In the meantime, I suspect there are many newsagents who would say to the ANF and those involved in these discussions that the ANF does not represent them.
Newsagents, check your margin
Most newsagents do not know the margin they make from what I’d call discretionary product – product where counter staff can play a role guiding the customer to one item over another.
I’d recommend yo take a moment to list all of the categories where your staff can guide the outcome of a sale. Next, find out the margin for every possible product in the category. The, check your sales. Finally, work out what you could have made recommending the most financially beneficial product.
Whether you tell staff to recommend based solely on your margin is up to you. At least make that decision with all of the information at your fingertips.
Christmas starts
With Christmas well and truly under way at the majors, we created an initial window display last week to feature some soft toys and boxed Christmas cards. This is the earliest we have gone out with Christmas. It is working, customers are purchasing.
The battle is around space and the battle between calendars, diaries, books, Christmas and the usual flow of promotions. The next two and a half months will be challenging on this front.
Our focus is to create a unique and enjoyable shopping experience while, at the same time, embracing every opportunity of the channel and the season.
Halloween gingerbread
This new gingerbread product we have found for Halloween brilliant designs and a great taste. This is a perfect counter offer to fit with our Halloween promotion. From what we understand, we are the first newsagency to offer this line. We are looking forward to seeing how it performs. Our fall back position is that we get to eat what is left. Yum! Seriously though, it is good to have some depth to our Halloween offer beyond witches hats and other costume items.
We sourced this product from Vicki’s Bickies in
Swamped by applicants
We received applications from sixty five people in five days of running an ad for casual retail staff at our Forest Hill and Frankston stores. Many would prefer full time but would take anything. I see this as a sign of the times and an opportunity to find good people.
Cool USB sticks
This VW Kobmi van USB stick is one of many I saw today at the Mega Fair in Hong Kong. Some manufacturers are creating some fun USB devices – for different demongraphics. There are USB sticks targeted to men, women and kids. The people with this Kombi Van USB stick also had USB memory stick readers in the form of a range of luxury cars – for office desks. Very cool.
The pen is mightier
If the number of pens on display at the Mega Show in Hong Kong this week is any guide, handwriting has a long a healthy future. I’d estimate that between 200 and 300 companies has stands full of pens on display. From the quirky to the everyday to the premium. I have never seen so many pens.
Dymocks selling digital books
Just as you enter Dymocks at the IFC Centre in Hong Kong, next to the counter, is a bold self-service facility from where you can purchase and download digital books to a range of devices. It looks much better and brighter than my photo shows. The display is in the best position in the store – showing the importance of this move into digital to Dymocks.
From the self-service unit you can search their stock database and quickly find titles for which digital editions are available. It is very easy to use – always a challenge for self-service units like this.
The rest of the shop appears to have the same range of books as other times I have visited.
Don’t be scared, be smart
The news reports over recent weeks are enough to make any newsagent worry about business. Worrying achieves nothing positive. Indeed, it can suck you into pursuing failure.
Ignoring the economic news, we are using our point of sale software to pursue growth. Plenty of smart newsagents with good software are doing this. Things like using the software to marketing the business at every opportunity, to improve customer service and to cut labour costs.
The staff roster is a good example. Using your point of sale software to manage your roster makes it easy to make changes. At the risk of humiliation I’d suggest the Coco Chanel approach to rostering.
Since many newsagency employees read this blog, I have a revenue raising suggestion for you to balance the above suggestion that your boss cut hours from the roster: If you are responsible for a part of the newsagency in which you work, ask to see sales and other reports which compare this year to last. Get into as much details as possible Look a your area as if your future depends on you achieving cost savings or sales growth of, better still, both. By you thinking about your part of the business as an owner and with access to new data about your area you are likely to drive a good result for the business and for you.
My point is that smart newsagent computer systems can be your best friend in tough times. Use them to their fullest and worry less.
Kudos for e-paper
So, finally – we have electronic device which is a reasonable enough size and weight to potentially replace ordinary paper. This’ll either change the world, or bankrupt the company.
Zack Whittaker writing at ZD Net about the e-paper device developed at Cambridge University and being manufactured by Plastic Logic. Be sure to check out the photos of the device.
This is another reason we need flexibility in or shofit design.
TV Guide sells for $1
In 1988 the US TV Guide sold for US$3billion. Last week it sold for US$1.00, yes, one dollar. Village Voice has more on this story.