Newsagency Management Assistance

newsXpress General Manager Ben Kay has been involved in several field trips over the last two weeks, working with newsXpress members at a senior management level on strategic business opportunities and challenges.  These visits are outside the regular cycle of visits undertaken by our team of newsXpress Business Development Managers.  They focus on specific business needs.

With more than twenty years newsagency experience, Ben is able to provide operational and strategic advice in a range of areas.

newsXpress is unique in the range of business development, assistance and development services it provides.

Great Easter display at newsXpress Orange

easter-orange.JPGnewsXpress Orange has put together a big, bold and appealing display promoting Easter gifts and products at the front of the business, facing into the shopping mall.

Beautifully layered and using height well, this display is sure to drive an excellent Easter season for newsXpress Orange.  A big WELL DONE to everyone involved in creating this display.

newsXpress preferred suppliers have provided access to an excellent range of gifts and other items for celebrating and marking Easter this year.  newsXpress is trilled to have access to such a broad range of products with which our members are able to create displays like the one in the photo from newsXpress Orange.

My Family stickers from The Sticker family a hit at Toorak

sticker-toorak.JPGnewsXpress Toorak is promoting the My Family sticker range from The Sticker Family with this display in store, facing customers as they enter the business.  The Sticker Family range is a popular new product offered through the newsXpress retail channel right across Australia … delivering tremendous success.  Some newsXpress stores are reporting $1,000 in sales a week – excellent value for a new category of products for a newsagency.

Toorak residents, like others across Australia, are having fun identifying their families using these stickers on the rear windows of cars – there are stickers for all situations.

Easter Eggs on the Dance Floor at Leongatha

easter-leongatha.JPGnewsXpress Leongatha has a terrific display of Easter Eggs on the dance floor – facing customers as they enter the store.  Placed adjacent to greeting cards, this Easter Egg range from Ernest Hillier and Darrell Lea is sure to tempt Leongatha shoppers.  The display is perfectly situated to make the most of the opportunity leading up to Easter.

In addition to a wonderful range of eggs for Easter, newsXpress members were last year offered an excellent range of gift and celebration items themed for Easter.

Easter Eggs at Gladstone Park

easter-gladstone.JPGnewsXpress Gladstone Park has Easter on display with this promotion of gifts and Easter Eggs from Ernest Hillier.  In a high traffic location on the dance floor, the Easter display is designed to grab impulse business – leveraging good traffic to the business for stationery, magazines and greeting cards.  The Ernest Hillier range caters to a broad cross-section of the community from young to old.  Their packaging stands out and makes any Easter display look fun and tempting.

Full Optus range now available in Yarram

optus-yarram.JPGnewsXpress Yarram in Victoria has introduced an Optus store within a store, continuing a project launched by newsXpress last year.  Developed with newsXpress preferred supplier Jenlist as well as with Optus, newsXpress Yarram has brought to Yarram and the surrounding district a full range of Optus products and services, a much needed fillip for the local community.

Created to strict guidelines established and monitored by Optus, the Optus store located inside newsXpress Yarram is a demonstration of real innovation for the newsagency channel, innovation supported and driven by newsXpress.

newsXpress is proud to be leading the newsagency channel on this communications opportunity.

There are plenty of people complaining about challenges facing newsagents yet few investing time and money in helping newsagents find a bright new future.  newsXpress prefers to invest in the future rather than dwelling on the past.

newsXpress Seasonal Focus Pays Off

The analysis of year on year same store sales data for seasons in 2010 has been completed. The newsXpress strategy for seasons is delivering excellent rewards to many newsXpress members and our preferred suppliers.

There is nothing like well above average growth to show the financial and business value growth of newsXpress membership.  This is what newsXpress and newsXpress members achieved last year.

Assessing the growth by seasons and comparing newsXpress performance with the average achieved by newsagents shows 2010 to have been a very good year.  For some seasons, newsXpress year on year performance was more than double that of the average for the newsagency channel.

The latest data will be shared in some detail at our next round of one day mini conferences.

April 2011 In-Store Offers Newsletter Published

Late last week we have published our April In-Store offers newsletter for our members so that they can use prepare this for mailings this coming week to customers. By publishing prior to the last weekend of the month we help our members make the most off the marketing opportunity from our professional newsletter.

The feedback from members for our In Store Offers newsletter is wonderful.  newsXpress members like the professionalism, that they can personalise it with their details and that it promotes products from newsXpress preferred suppliers.

newsXpress Yarram using the windows

yarram-windowm.JPGnewsXpress Yarram has run another successful window campaign by framing each of the two front windows to connect with in-store promotions.  The framing is aa teerrific ideas since it does not detract from the view into the store.  In the example in the photo you can see the window promoting the March Book Sale and there, just inside the window, is the display table packed with books from the book sale.  The framing is subtle yet noticeable … very professional.

EXCLUSIVE: Another newsXpress Merchandise Opportunity

We can’t name the suppliers yet but watch out for another lucrative newsXpress exclusive which will be backed with a tremendous multi-media campaign. newsXpress members are set to reap the rewards of additional traffic and sales thanks to the work of our national merchandise team.

In a few months, through the exclusive offers, the commercial value of the newsXpress difference will be on show.

Easter takes off at Knox City

easter1.JPGnewsXpress Knox has created several Easter displays including the store of store display shown in the photo.  Promoting a range of plush, Easter eggs, easter cards and other gifts from newsXpress preferred suppliers, the Easter range at Knox is already attracting traffic from the shopping mall and driving good sales.  The team at Knox has been careful to develop an Easter offer which appeals across generations.

newsXpress offered a broad range of Easter products to members last year.  Many were offered on terms which were more competitive than the terms available to other newsagents.  This is a valuable newsXpress difference – delivering access to sought after products at better prices than other newsagents with the same products.

By offering products from a range of suppliers, newsXpress has helped its members offer a depth of range for Easter and thereby more easily compete with bigger retailers.

We have seen Easter sales grow in newsXpress stores over the years … thanks to our product and marketing support.

newsXpress Helps More Newsagents

newsXpress General Manager Ben Kay is set to announce a series of new member acquisitions as a result of wonderful word of mouth shared by newsXpress members about their experiences with the group.  Ben has, in his role as General Manager, met with each of the soon to be announced new members to ensure that they have the outlook, drive and desire to uphold the principles of newsXpress and to add to the overall value of our newsagency marketing group.

Any newsagent interested in building a stronger and more valuable newsagency is welcome to speak with Ben about newsXpress on 0419 678 754.

My Family stickers from The Sticker Family a success at Ballarat

stickerf-ballarat.JPGnewsXpress Ballarat is using a multi-faceted approach to promoting the My Family stickers from The Sticker Family – with terrific success.  In addition to a strategically placed window display drawing customers in, they are promoting the range at the service desk – with a sign as well as a mat placed on the counter.  Engaging with customers in a number of ways is helping them maximise the opportunity from this excellent margin product.

newsXpress is leading the newsagency channel on this excellent new category product.  Our success has been so good that another group have been scrambling to access the range of its stores. Imitation is the best form of flatter, or so they say.

Ink on offer at newsXpress Jimboomba

ink-jimboomba.JPGnewsXpress Jimboomba has introduced the HOT ink! range as part of their further expansion of the product mix in the business.  Focused on rspected brands and displayed using newsXpress provided shelf talkers, the HOT ink! range makes for a nice behind the counter presentation in the newsagency.  They are supporting the ink range with flyers being sent to homer surrounding the centre.

Great Newsagency Deals for newsXpress Members

Newsagency marketing group newsXpress last week released details for more special offers and product deals for newsXpress members from some of our suite of preferred suppliers. These special deals mean that newsXpress newsagents are able to buy better and therefore improve margin or pass on savings to customers.

newsXpress is committed to helping newsXpress newsagents buy stock at competitive prices. Rather than keeping bonus margin for itself, newsXpress prefers to help members access the financial rewards of good our group wide negotiation.

Suppliers like newsXpress because of its commitment to helping members sell preferred supplier stock. It is one thing to negotiate a good deal for stock and another altogether to sell that stock in a timely manner, to maximise the financial return for the newsagency.

newsXpress supports preferred supplier stock with tactical placement advice, visual merchandising advice, marketing support and other assistance. The result is an increased bankable margin from special offers.

Sure the deal is important. However, a deal which does not sell or does not sell quickly is not as valuable as a deal which sells the way many newsXpress deals sell.

These are newsXpress differences in action.

Ink Sale Growth at newsXpress Maryborough

ink-maryborough.JPGnewsXpress Maryborough is recording excellent growth in ink sales thanks to the latest HOT ink! promotion launched at the start of the month. Customers are coming in with the flyer, seeking out the excellent deals on offer.

This latest HOT ink! flyer continues the leadership of the newsXpress retail network for ink. We are supporting quality national brands with professional and success driving marketing.

In addition to excellent prices for ink, our newsXpress team of stores provide excellent customer service.

Our stores are banking excellent margin dollars thanks to the negotiation skills of our merchandise team. We ensure that we help our members make the maximum margin possible. Too often we see national buyers keep margin for themselves.

HIT ink! at newsXpress is a real winner. The success at newsXpress Maryborough is an excellent example.

New Hallmark Gift Trim at Hit at Melton

giftt-melton.JPGnewsXpress Melton is reporting excellent sales of the new range of peel and stick gift trims from Hallmark cards.  This innovative product stands out and is delivering excellent incremental to the card and gift shopper.  The trims are ideas for taking a gift bag or package to a new level. There are bright and attractive trims for a range of occasions.

newsXpress stores have been offered access to the rim as part of our Hallmark preferred supplier relationship.  We are thrilled to have access to the range.

newsXpress Leads With Shop Local Campaign

shop-local.JPGnewsXpress is proud of its leadership in SHOP LOCAL campaigns on behalf of newsXpress newsagents. Members of the newsXpress newsagency marketing group benefit from the message included in marketing collateral which promotes the local connections of newsXpress member businesses with the local community.

The latest example of our engagement in SHOP LOCAL campaign is the promotion included with our March 2011 HOT ink! flier. We thanked shoppers for supporting their LOCAL newsXpress store and reinforced that shopping locally at newsXpress is beneficial.

Regular reinforcement of the SHOP LOCAL message and proving the personal and community economic value of shopping locally are important elements of this campaign.

newsXpress understands the importance of the local community connection and is pleased to lead the newsagency channel in integrating this message in its marketing campaigns.