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Be my Valentine!

newsXpress Sun Valley & newsXpress Kin Kora are leading the way with merchandising standards and creating theatre within their stores. This Valentine’s Day has given them another chance to show their wares and we thank Ian Chapman and Sarah Coombs for their exceptional photos and feedback on specific products.

The Sun Valley Photos (below) feature an aromatic product range from Cooee Brands (Australian Flower Therapy) which is selling really well. Heart beat lollies are given out with each customer purchase along with ‘Happy Valentine’s Day’ wishes. The newsXpress Floor Decals are also hitting the mark with a couple of cheeky male customers inquiring as to whether they may indeed ‘steal’ a kiss!

Meanwhile newsXpress Kin Kora (below) have highlighted the Chocolate Gems range which has filled the holes in their Darrell Lea offer and in most cases requires very little work to be saleable. The Hallmark product is selling very well and in particular the Forever Friends ‘Marry Me’ Bear which comes with a free Darrell Lea Love Heart Lollypop.

Sales are going well and everyone is having fun with the season, an outpost will be introduced over the weekend to capitalise on the peak periods – Love is really in the Air!!

Lotto innovation at newsXpress

The various Lotto agencies around the country offer great incentives with mega cash jackpots every other week. This enticement is enough for the regular punters but newsagents often find themselves needing to add their unique flair to truly maximise sales.

Two wonderful newsXpress examples have been communicated during the week:

newsXpress Ballarat used the occasion of this week’s $10mil Powerball Draw to link the theme to Chinese New Year. A considerable amount of lucky symbols and goodwill are associated with Chinese New Year celebrations and the idea behind a ‘Year of the Rat’ syndicate was inspired. Sue Neal reports great interest and was appreciative to be able to utilise and modify the newsXpress provided marketing materials.

newsXpress Sun Valley is a creative hot bed, not just in the newsXpress group but the industry whole. This simple yet effective idea to promote their Amazon Scratchits was a masterstroke.

There are challenges associated with a co-operative franchise operation, but the positives such as freedom of creativity such as exhibited here are more than worthwhile.

Love is in the air at newsXpress

Further examples of the ‘big deal’ newsagents make out of Valentine’s Day. This is a perfect opportunity to engage with their customers in a personal way which the promotion lends itself to.

newsXpress Goulburn is right into Valentine’s Day with even introducing special wallpaper in their Parker pen stand.

newsXpress Erindale have gone all out for Valentine’s Day with Chocolate displays and large signs to help promote their message. Notice the colour theme in the photo? This is done to relate as possible with the traditional colour of the season and attract additional customers.

newsXpress Jamison get creative and prove it is never too early to start a promotion. Darrell Lea sent Easter out a little early so instead of waiting Connie and Dominic have combined their Valentine’s Day and Easter. Already they have received significant orders in large quantities from local businesses for the Easter Product, Hundreds & Thousands eggs.

Hallmark recognition for hardworking newsXpress Windsor

newsXpress Windsor have received the fantastic news that they will be promoted into a higher rebate classification in their Hallmark account. This has occurred due to the hard work of Kam and his team to promote the brand through cards, gift & wrap and an increase in sales. A greater emphasis on merchandising, add on sales and range has led Hallmark to recognise these results and provide backdated rebates through 2007.

The ability to work closely with key account managers and the ever present incentive to improve your return has proved an on-going win/win relationship for newsXpress and Hallmark.

Kam Wong pictured with Karen Sutton at newsXpress Windsor.

Surfing Life strike the right chord at newsXpress Salamander Bay

newsXpress Salamander Bay capture that elusive winning formula with the add on promotion to the new issue of Surfing Life.

Magazine publishers face an unenviable task to keep coming up with fresh and relevant ideas and promotions to continue selling their title and to attract new readers with each edition. According to one of our members, Surfing Life has nailed it with their January edition.

Fiona Matthews from newsXpress Salamander Bay has given kudos to Surfing Life magazine who released their current issue on Wednesday with an Australian flag branded with their masthead as the add-on gift.

Remembering back 12 months ago when Big Day out organisers banned the Australian flag from their event, who can forget the uproar it caused. (not to mention the sales increase of anything with the Australian flag on it)

“I’d like to think that the guys at Surfing Life saw this as a perfect opportunity for this Australia Day” mused Fiona.

“Likewise we saw the opportunity and immediately put the extra flags up in the shop. (Kudos again Surfing Life- providing the newsagencies with a few samples!) It goes without saying we sold out of all the magazines we had with the last one sold as a customer banged on the door as we were closing – ‘me mate said yous had them’ “.

newsXpress Salamander Bay honour a great Australia Day tradition at their store with staff dressing up in the local lifesaving clubs gear (Fingal Bay J ) which they provide to them in return for a donation to their club. They also set up red & yellow donation boxes on the day (the clubs colours) on the front counters for customers to donate their spare change over the weekend. Last year customers donated over $140.00.

Fiona continued “I’d like to believe that these sales themed days along with the “odd” seasons like Halloween & New Year (we did a roaring trade in balloons, hats, blowers and even New Year themed napkins – all from Balloon Agencies) set our store above & beyond the majors in our centre.

Whilst there is a commercial reality to consider these days, when I look at the happy faces of my staff enjoying themselves and customers are asking us what we are doing next, it makes you smile & think to yourself, days like these are why I love being a newsagent!”

newsxpress Rutherglen is embracing HOT ink!

Since joining newsXpress Jim O’Toole from newsXpress Rutherglen has swapped from newsink to HOT ink! With the superior brochures, marketing and supply chain offered by newsXpress, Jim has seen his sales go through the roof.

He is running down old Keytek stock and only going with genuine product. www.hotink.com.au

Valentine’s Day at newsXpress Scott’s Lismore

newsXpress Scott’s Lismore have gone all out to stamp themselves as the premier retailer in town.

Their Valentine’s Day set up is a great example of how they have gone about this. Giving the promotion prime real estate at the front and centre of the store. They are hoping this produces a good sales result and to show their initiative even further have introduced an opportunity for customers to win their money back with the purchase of any Hallmark Bear.

Australia Day at newsXpress Sarina

Patriotism is alive and well if you consider the outstanding support for Australia Day in the small Queensland township of Sarina.

Mark Petersen and his team gave out over 600 Australian flags and sold 50 flag caps and 36 shirts. Mark believes they would have sold more than three times this quantity if they had have promoted during the week and not just on Friday and Saturday.

Embracing the newsXpress/Hallmark Strategic Partnership

Since joining the newsXpress group and swapping card suppliers from John Sands to Hallmark, Jim O’Toole at newsXpress Rutherglen has seen his card sales go through the roof.

Jim was happy with Sands, but as a retailer it’s sales that count and the newsXpress/Hallmark partnership has certainly provided not only card sales but free entry to the Hallmark Alliance program which is paid for by his newsXpress membership.

The forever friends range by Hallmark is performing extraordinarily well and the newsXpress network of stores is experiencing phenomenal sales with this range.

Marketing is what drives sales and that’s what newsXpress and the Hallmark Alliance partnership does for newsXpress stores, turning newsagents into savvy retailers.

HOT ink! powering along at newsXpress Orange

Since leaving newsink, Paul Blunden’s ink and technology sales have sky rocketed. Not only is he selling more ink cartridges but his media, technology and allied stationery has gone up as a result. Not only is he cheaper than the majors the impact is lifting the traffic to the store.

Marketing is key to Paul and newsXpress Orange’s ink success. By embracing HOT ink! and driving his sales the whole team is confident in this ‘new money’ category and the store is reaping the rewards. www.hotink.com.au

Embracing gifts – newsXpress Orange

newsXpress stores are embracing giftware in a big way. Not only for the margin opportunities but for the point of difference it gives our network.

newsXpress Orange are showing the way. Quality gifts at great prices.

Turning newsagents into confident retailers that’s what newsXpress does for its members.

newsXpress Watergardens continues to innovate – new giftware tables

Not being content with the fit out of the store newsXpress Watergardens has invested for the future by adding some new giftware tables. These learning’s have come from outside the traditional newsagency business and preliminary results are very positive.

BACK TO SCHOOL

newsXpress Castle Towers ‘Back to School’ – No stress at newsXpress. Whilst most newsagents leave this to the majors newsXpress provides the marketing collateral to give you the confidence, the ideas and the customer draw to return ‘Back to School’ to the farm.

No stress at newsXpress!

Canson Art out-posting at newsXpress Watergardens

At the newsXpress laboratory at Watergardens in Victoria, we have taken our new Art partnership with canson to the next level. Out posting of Art product with a National brand draws customer attention and builds sales.

Here is a fantastic example of how the newsXpress network looks for new money positive revenue streams. The Canson brand born in Europe some 450 years ago allows the newsXpress stores to further accelerate new product innovation and bring new product to the market.

newsXpress Gladstone Park

newsXpress Gladstone Park are proof that you can run two marketing campaigns at once. They are currently running the “no stress at newsXpress“ Back to School marketing in conjunction with the newsXpress-Hallmark Valentines Day seasonal marketing. Working multiple parts of the store at once is paying dividends for them with great sales across multiple categories.

Valentine’s Day Merchandising at newsXpress Watergardens

newsXpress Watergardens is approaching Valentines Day as most other retailers would with passion and vigor utilising gift ware that suits this season and embracing the support of the Hallmark-newsXpress strategic partnership.

Natural disaster brings out the best at newsXpress Emerald

The team at newsXpress Emerald have managed to keep their humour as their town has become waterlogged by the terrible rainfall in the central Queensland township.

Peter and Sally Murphy have been perfect members since joining the group in March, 2007. This setback will undoubtedly affect their business and life but with a smile on their face and the support of the group they will come back bigger and stronger.

The temporary newsXpress Emerald store in Andrew’s St.

HOT ink! gets HOT results!

The following testimony is from Paul Martin at newsXpress Toowong in Brisbane.

Hot Ink catalogue #1 gave Paul from newsXpress Toowong the lever he needed to enter the Ink market with compelling strategies of best cost price and selling price, a professional flyer, great service and back up, and the knowledge of which product to stock. Having just ordered his 5th consecutive flyer he commented that You have to be patient the first time, but then results compound, he has seen a 30% growth each catalogue. Getting the message through to customers and watching sales expand has been great, – “My team hand deliver catalogues to our local businesses around the Village twice during each campaign and this has great results”. “Once customers know the prices are so good, they have confidence that my other stationery product is also well priced, and so sales become linked as customers buy other stationery product in the same purchase. Why give your customers an excuse to shop elsewhere, once they can buy ink from you, they buy their other product as well”.

Kam Wong pictured with Karen Sutton at newsXpress Windsor.

Ink & Toner at newsXpress Arana Hills, featured in this photo is the unique Cartridge Rescue recycling bin.

The temporary newsXpress Emerald store in Andrew’s St.