Author: mark

I am a Director of newsXpress, a marketing group for newsagents keen for a bright future. You can reach me on +61 418 321 338 or mark[at]towersystems.com.au

Great Christmas presentation at newsXpress West Wyalong

The team at newsXpress West Wyalong has put up a terrific range of Christmas products for West Wyalong shoppers. Catering to a broad range of needs and delivering excellent margin, the Christmas 2012 range positions the business well for driving deeper baskets and building good word of mouth for the business as the go to place in West Wyalong for Christmas.

It’s a Hallmark Christmas at newsXpress Sanctuary Lakes

Check out the display created in-store at newsXpress Sanctuary Lakes a range of Christmas items from Hallmark. This display tells a story and is certain to drive shopper engagement.

There are interactive products, wrapping items and gift lines.

All the items in the display are visually connected through the Hallmark branding and a consistent design. Bringing them together like this is professional retailing.

Often we will see items from one supplier spread through a store. This display shows the visual impact that can be achieved by bringing them together.

Hallmark Christmas promotion

newsXpress Bairnsdale is offering access to an excellent range of Hallmark boxed cards, wrap and other items with this dance-floor display.

Created as an island display that can be shopped from all sides, this helps serve many shoppers efficiently. The display also boldly represents the Hallmark brand – the most recognised greeting card brand in Australia.

Even though the Christmas season has a month to run, sales for boxed cards have been especially strong this year.

This display in Bairnsdale is what we would consider to be best practice.

How to attract shoppers to your newsagency in a shopping centre mall

newsXpress Knox has been enjoying excellent sales of the newsXpress Christmas lines and other key products being pitched at the front of the business, on the lease line.

Paying careful attention to the front of store message has paid off for this corporate store and helped it achieve above average results for the performance of similar businesses in the centre.

History shows that a compelling offer at the front of the business can attract people who would not usually visit or who may not have planned to visit that day. Key to a successful display is to appeal to a key demographics. This is where the Knox presentation works particularly well.

Exclusive to newsXpress: New Idea Masterclass bundle

newsXpress members have been given an exclusive opportunity by our friends at Pacific Magazines. Early in December we will have a bundle of the first two issues of New Idea masterclass for sale at half price.

The sale or return terms and professional collateral promoting exclusively give newsXpress an excellent opportunity to pitch this pack as perfect for Christmas. That the promotion is under the New Idea brand gives a credibility to the offer.

With food titles selling so well this year, this New Idea Masterclass bundle makes for an excellent Christmas gift.

Hallmark promoting Disney opportunity at newsXpress in New Idea

Check out the full page ad to run New Idea magazine promoting the Disney range of recordable storybooks from Hallmark and their availability through newsXpress.

This New Idea ad brings together Disney, Hallmark and newsXpress, presenting a strong message to consumers about the positioning of our retail brand thanks to strong partnership relationships.

Being promoted in this way, as the only retailer listed in the ad, is tremendous kudos for newsXpress.

newsXpress members are set to leverage this and related marketing and promotional activity for the interactive products to make the most of the opportunity this Christmas. They will do with with terrific in-store displays, email campaigns and other activity to drive traffic and sales.

Water canon hero product for newsXpress newsagency marketing group Christmas

newsXpress Watergardens was the first newsXpress store to receive the newsXpress Christmas range. It was a visual merchandising experiment for our team, creating strong stories to share with other newsXpress members.  All of this was done in a week that we relocated the store to a busier part of the centre and transitioning from 300 sq m to 150 sq m. So, a lot was going on this week.

The result was several key hero displays for Christmas product including this display for the water canon. This photo was shared with newsXpress members weeks ago as part of our VM training kit for making the most of the Christmas opportunity.

In addition to negotiating excellent supply deals, newsXpress helps members unlock opportunities with training, support and guidance to help turn products on the shop floor to money in the bank sooner.

Impulse purchase placement drives Christmas offer at newsXpress Pakenham

The team at newsXpress Pakenham has placed their newsXpress Christmas catalogue range in a candy lane position, so that all shoppers heading to the counter pass the range.

Places to tells a story and engage shoppers, this display pitches a wonderful point of difference for newsXpress Pakenham in the busy Pakenham shopping mix.

newsXpress collateral caps Christmas

newsXpress Bairnsdale is making excellent use of the newsXpress Christmas posters in a range of locations in-store including in the Christmas card and decoration area as shown in the photo.

Capping a section of the store in this way with a consistent visual message that connects with your external marketing and other in-store activity is the ideal way to make the most of the overall marketing investment.

Christmas at newsXpress Bairnsdale is working a treat thanks to terrific work from the team in-store.

Cheeki bottle school fundraiser

newsXpress is proud to be engaged with the Cheeki Bottles School Fundraising Opportunity.

This is a comprehensive local school and community program run with a local school through a newsXpress location and in partnership with our fiends at Cheeki.

newsXpress members are sold the safe and respected Cheeki bottle range at the wholesale price, then on sell the range with a healthy mark up to the school. The school will on sell to their school community at the RRP.

The benefits for retailers to implement newsXpress / Cheeki our fundraiser are:

  • Help their local school with making additional funds for the school.
  • Providing an environmentally and healthy products to school students. Most Schools are banding plastic bottles in their schools.
  • Generate more foot traffic for their store, for possible future sales.

newsXpress engages with suppliers in a broad range of way to drive the local community connection and, through this, attract more shoppers to the store.

Terrific Christmas presentation at newsXpress Sanctuary Lakes

newsXpress Sanctuary Lakes is pitching Christmas and Hallmark at the front of the store, facing into the mall with this excellent display. Strategically placed, the displays are set to maximise shopper attention and drive the importance of shopping now for Christmas. The Sanctuary Lakes team has done an excellent job of leveraging the Hallmark collateral to present a professional and eye-catching display.

Darrell Lea plan for newsXpress members

Following the sale of the Darrell Lea business several months ago, there was a period of uncertainty about availability of this product and the confectionery space more generally.

newsXpress undertook to review all options and source a more complete and certain confectionary range of members.

This week, newsXpress has shared with members a range of newsXpress preferred supplier options for confectionery products including new terms for Darrell Lea product plus access to other leading brands.

The company has gone about its assessment of opportunities in a structured and professional way and in consultation with members strong in the confectionery space. The result is preferred supplier opportunities that enable newsXpress members to tell a strong and commercially rewarding story in the confectionery space seasonally and all year round.

Promoting Better Homes and Gardens Christmas issue

newsXpress Pakenham is promoting the Christmas issue of Better Homes and Gardens with an excellent display well placed in store to make the most of this very special issue of the magazine. Placing this next to the Better Homes and Gardens Christmas cookbook is perfect for driving a deeper shopping basket.  The result will be terrific sales and bonus margin dollars. Well done newsXpress Pakenham!

Exclusive mains pressure water cannon hot!

We have newsXpress members reporting excellent sales  of the mains pressure water canon that is one of the exclusive to newsXpress items in our 2012 Christmas range.

One newsXpress location in Queensland sold eleven units in a couple of days, another in Victoria has sold eight in the frirst week.

Having a world first product available exclusively from newsXpress stores is delivering to us a commercially valuable point of difference to our members and to us.

newsXpress members are embracing the opportunity of ordering extra stock.

newsXpress exclusive Christmas collateral

newsXpress members have been provided a range of exclusive collateral for use through Christmas trading. Centred on this Christmas poster, a range of collateral including shelf talkers and price flyers have been provided for promoting the overall season as well as specific products. All of this collateral has been provided timed with the release of the newsXpress Christmas product range.

Another profitable product for newsXpress members.

These cute little interactive Chatter Munk plush items are going gangbusters in newsXpress locations. We have had members report sales of 80 in a matter of weeks. For birthday, Christmas or any occasion – Chatter Munks are hot products and working perfectly as an impulse purchase item.

newsXpress identified the opportunity through one of our preferred suppliers and helped unlock the opportunity through in-store engagement with our RDM team and our national merchandise team.

Our exclusive RDMs are terrific at guiding newsXpress members to unlocking excellent impulse and more strategic product opportunities from preferred suppliers.

At the counter or elsewhere on the shop floor, the Chatter Munks are working a treat for newsXpress.

newsXpress delivers best practice visual merchandising

newsXpress has delivered a best practice shop floor visual merchandising solution to members with the display for Patch, a hero product from our Christmas range.

newsXpress members taking the full supply of Patch received a premium floor stand for no extra cost. The stand includes a LCD screen on which the Patch TV ad plays in a loop. This ad, with sound, shows the fun of Patch for the entire family. It perfectly pitches the product, showing off the value of smart technology to help engage with shoppers.

Placing the floor display unit toward the front of the shop and where the TV ad can be heard enhances the opportunities Patch sales.

newsXpress members are reporting excellent success so far with Patch, good early sales to customers happy to have access to this unique product.

newsXpress negotiates excellent product deals for members as well as access to exclusive products. It then backs these deals with opportunities, like this free display unit, with which to drive sales of the products.

newsXpress members talk newsagency management in Perth

Newsagency marketing and newsagency management were on the agenda when Western Australian members of newsXpress got together late last week in Perth.

Over the course of four hours the group and some newsXpress management shared ideas, insights and opportunities in pursuit of more successful businesses.

It is at round-table free-flowing discussions like these where terrific business ideas emerge – ideas for local businesses and ideas that newsXpress can take more widely than just in Western Australia.

newsXpress has a unique offer for newsagents as demonstrated through the latest member meetings. Facilitating proactive discussion between newsagents unlocks genuine business growth opportunities, often without the need to invest further capital in the business.