The morning in a busy newsagency does not look like it did even five years ago. Newspapers are still on the rack. Lottery is still queueing. But the rhythm of the day has changed, and the customers who used to come in for one thing are now coming in for something else entirely. Or not coming in at all.
If you run an independent shop, the question is no longer whether things are changing. It is which of the changes you choose to lean into.
Here are the seven shifts we see most clearly across the newsXpress network in 2026.
1. Magazines are not coming back, and that is not the problem
Magazines have been declining in volume for more than a decade. The retailers who treat the loss of magazine foot traffic as the problem are stuck. The retailers who treat it as freed-up floor space are growing.
The space a slow magazine bay used to occupy can deliver three to five times the gross profit when it is reset to a category that suits your customers. The decision is not whether to do this. It is which category, and how soon.
2. Lottery has moved to the phone
Online lottery purchase is now the default for a meaningful share of regular players. The over-the-counter draw is not gone, but it is smaller. The smart response is not to chase the lost revenue. It is to use the freed counter time and counter space to drive higher-margin sales to the customers still walking in.
3. The card category is consolidating around fewer, better suppliers
Greeting cards remain one of the most profitable categories in the shop. What has changed is that the right pocket plan now matters more than the total pocket count. Independent retailers running a disciplined two-supplier model are routinely outperforming retailers carrying three or four suppliers across more pockets.
We have documented card revenue lifts of 33%, 50%, 70% and 76% in newsXpress shops that recast their card mix on evidence. Floor space stayed the same. Capital tied up went down. Revenue went up.
4. Coins and collectibles have become a real revenue line
Five years ago, coins were a curiosity in most shops. Today, in shops that have learnt how to merchandise and recommend them, coins are a meaningful weekly revenue line. We have seen shops go from $0 to $50,000 a year in coin sales.
The trend is not about coin collectors. It is about gift-givers. The gift buyer who walks past a beautifully presented commemorative coin set is a buyer the supermarket cannot serve.
5. Click and Collect is expected, not innovative
Local retailers who do not offer a way to reserve, pay for or pick up a product online are conceding a class of customer. Click and Collect does not need to be a Shopify build. It can start as an Instagram message and a held item under the counter. What matters is that the option exists and that local customers know it.
6. AI has moved from novelty to daily tool
The retailers using AI in 2026 are not the retailers with technical skills. They are the retailers who started with one task — writing a Facebook post, replying to a Google review, summarising a sales report — and built from there. Five minutes a day, repeated, has become a real productivity gain.
We have been helping newsXpress members use AI for more than two years and have published an exclusive AI toolkit for our members covering the everyday tasks where AI saves time and improves decisions. The toolkit details are members-only, but the principle is not: AI works best when you treat it as a fast, helpful colleague who needs to be told about your specific shop.
7. The marketing group itself is being reset
Independent retailers are reassessing what their marketing group actually does for them. The old model — supplier discounts and a quarterly catalogue — is no longer enough. The retailers who are growing belong to groups that are active partners: groups that will sit down with you, look at your numbers, and tell you what to change.
That is the difference between a directory of suppliers and a partnership.
What this means for your shop
The seven shifts are not coming. They are here. The retailers who lean into them are growing 10% to 20% a year. The retailers who do not are slipping at about the same rate.
We can help you work through any of the seven, starting with whichever one is most pressing for you.
If any of this resonated, we would be happy to talk. There is no obligation, and no sales script. Just a conversation about your shop.
Mark Fletcher 0418 321 338 mark@newsxpress.com.au Michael Elvey 0400 331 055 michael@newsxpress.com.au www.newsxpress.com.au





