newsXpress was disappointed to announce to our members and suppliers the resignation of Ben Kay as General Manager of the business yesterday. Ben had served the company with energy and professionalism for several years, first as Merchandise Manager and then as General Manager. Ben leaves the business in better shape than when he joined and now moves on to running his own newsagency, newsXpress Parkmore, and engaging in other business opportunities. The friendships he has with newsXpress members will endure for years to come.
Change in business is rarely easy, especially unplanned change. We are fortunate to have Rob Henderson stepping from his National Merchandise Manager role with newsXpress into a new role as Chief Operating Officer. This is a new senior role created by the Board to facilitate newsXpress moving to the next phase of its development as a newsagency marketing group.
Over the next weeks and months further appointments will be announced as the group structures for growth not only of our member newsagency businesses but of newsXpress itself. New assets will be engaged and skills employed to provide newsXpress members and newsXpress with a valuable competitive edge on several fronts.
At our national conference in Melbourne in early March newsXpress members and suppliers will see first-hand some of the enhancements to the newsXpress offer being deployed. We are thrilled to note that this conference is set to have more newsagents attending than any newsagent conference in the last few years.
A key part of the conference will be a closed member only session outlining the newsXpress business plan for 2012 and into 2013 and reflecting how this benefits current and future members of the group.
newsXpress has already advertised for additional administrative resources for the head office. This is first additional role we are seeking to fill.
We are in the middle of a series of supplier meetings discussing exclusive opportunities and unlocking ways of delivering valuable commercial benefits for newsXpress members. These meetings and our business plans focus on helping newsXpress members generate new traffic, build deeper shopping baskets and drive the operating efficiency of their businesses.
newsXpress members and suppliers with questions, comments and feedback are welcome to speak with newsXpress Directors: Mark Fletcher 0418 321 338 or Graham Randall on 0419 711 153 or newsXpress Chief Operating Officer Rob Henderson on 0401 336 622.
