Preparing for the conference

nx_bags.JPGIt is all hands on desk as we make final preparations for our inaugural newsXpress conference here at Conrad Juptiers Casino on the Gold Coast.  While the golfers are out enjoying the fine Gold Coast weather, others are here at conference headquarters preparing gift bags and other materials for attendees. 

The fun starts tonight with a dinner and relaxing social evening at a secret venue.  We have been careful to balance the agenda to ensure that it is a learning and battery-recharge experience.  Owning and operating a newsagency is a challenge and establishing a work-life balance can be difficult.  Hence the inclusion of relaxation opportunities for newsXpress members to take a break.

newsXpress conference this week

nxconfbrochure.JPGnewsXpress members and our entire team are preparing to gather at the Gold Coast from tomorrow for our inaugural national conference.  Tomorrow kicks off with a golf day at the Robina Woods course followed by an evening event at a secret destination.

The conference proper begins Thursday with an excellent range of speakers including our keynote from the world renowned Peter Sheehan from New Zealand.  The two days are packed with value oriented presentations and workshops, ensuring that all participants will leave with innovations to implement.

Accompanying the conference is a full trade display where newsXpress preferred suppliers offer products and terms exclusive to newsXpress.

Calendar season in full swing

nx_cal.JPGCalendar season for 2009 has well and truly started based on sales data we are seeing from newsXpress stores.

Thanks to strategic supplier relationships, many newsXpress stores have an excellent range of special interest calendars.  These are key to early season calendar sales.

Michelle Caia is our in-house calendar specialist with years of experience in this lucrative category.  newsXpress is the only newsagent marketing group with such a resource.  Michelle is a key reason our newsXpress newsagecnies perform so well in calendar sales and margin.

We see excellent synergy between calendars, greeting cards and magazines – each category attracts consumers based on habit and habit is driven by range, especially in the special interest areas.

Meet the team

The newsXpress team met for most of yesterday in Melbourne to discuss the next phase of our development and make final plans for our national conference on the Gold Coast next week. We took the opportunity to get a group photo. Take a look at the team committed to helping newsagents get the best out of their businesses:

nx_team.JPG

From left to right, front to back: Ian Urquhart, Michelle Caia, Paul Waite, Karen Sutton, Lesly Bortfield, Belinda Adshead, Ben Kay, Trent Shields, Jeff Walsh, Ron Thorpe, Roger Bortfield, Graham Randall, Mark Fletcher and Sonia Ruhland.

Where can I find newsXpress?

On the other end of the phone was someone who has seen our TV ad for ink and wanted to know her nearest store so she could get the ink we at the price we are currently advertising. Every day we are hearing stories like this, stories of the latest TV commercial and other marketing which is changing consumer behaviour and bringing traffic to newsXpress stores.

Earlier this year we committed to increasing store traffic through a number of startegies. Our TV campaign is one of those. Even though this campaignn is only a few days old we already have good evidence of increased awareness leading to sales from consumers who were used to purchasing brand name ink elsewhere.

Bringing people back to the newsagency channel for stationery items and, in particular, bringing them to newsXpress, is an important part of our mission.

TV lures suppliers

The latest TV commercial from newsXpress – which started airing on Sunday – is attracting more than good consumer interest in our stores. Suppliers respect our investment in our brand and want to share in the newsXpress experience. While we are not about to make a supplier decision because of a pitch resulting from our latest TV commercial, it is pleasing to see our investment in the newsXpress brand being so noticed.

In 2008, the newsXpress brand will be the newsagent brand most widely advertised on TV. The more important measure, however, is the commercial results achieved from the advertising. This is what gets suppliers interested. Our innovative national stage marketing places us well in discussions with suppliers – current and prospective.

Historically, newsagents have negotiated fro a position of critical mass. Our approach is to negotiate having demonstrated our capabilities. The latest TV commercial is a good demonstration of our capabilities and our commitment to promoting the brands which support newsXpress newsagents.

Promoting the shredder

dsc04009.JPGFather’s Day has been a tremendous success at newsXpress this year.  Our stores have had a range of good-value items available including this Safeguard shredder which also came with a free photo album valued at $9.95.  The album was exclusive to newsXpress and provided us with another way to show the value of the newsXpress difference – to the consumer and to the newsXpress newsagent.

We understand that we compete against the big retail chains and that having a genuine point of difference is crucial.  Our merchandise team looks for ways to show this beyond price and range.

newsXpress members have reported excellent results from the shredder offer.

newsXpress national TV commercial

Our latest TV commercial starts tomorrow night on ten pay-TV channels as well as free to air – channels 7, 9, 10, WIN and Southern Cross. This TV campaign is promoting our latest Hot Ink offer and pitched our group of close to 150 stores against the majors. Given the value in the latest Hot Ink offer we are very happy to be in this competitive situation.

newsXpress members tell us that the Hot Ink marketing – the flyers and the TVC – help change consumer behavior. Our investment in better buying supported by strong national marketing shows that we can convince consumers that newsagent, newsXpress newsagents, offer good value. Our consistently strong Hot Ink offers, integrated with everything else newsXpress offers, demonstrates the value of newsXpress membership.

The latest Hot Ink TVC will run natuionally for two weeks and cap off another very successful Hot Ink campaign.

Only newsXpress has a commitment to regular call-to-action marketing outside traditional seasons.

Extending Father’s Day

fday.JPGnewsXpress helps its members broaden range around traditional shopping behaviour. Father’s Day is an excellent example of this strategy at work. the newsXpress merchandise team sourced a range of Father’s Day gift lines, many from suppliers new to newsagents.

This week, in the home stretch of the Father’s Day season, we have been hearing from newsXpress members about what has worked and what has not. While there have been some items which have not worked, they will easily fit in-store and sell between now and Christmas. These products are far outweighed by success stories. newsXpress members are reporting dramatic increases in gift line sales for Father’s Day around our offers.

Our merchandise team works hard to help our members push the boundaries. It is only by doing this that we are able to find what our businesses are capable of. We know the days of the traditional supplier driven newsagent are over. Our entrepreneurial members want to grow stronger, more margin-balanced businesses. Our buying and our supporting marketing collateral pursue this goal of margin balance relentlessly.

Our annual conference on the Gold Coast later this month will cover our merchandise strategies in more detail. If you are not a newsXpress members and want to get an insight into the newsXpress different, consider joining us at the conference on September 18 and 18.

Stationery is more than buying

pbar.JPGBuying stationery at the right price is important.  How you manage the product in-store is equally important.  newsXpress recognises the importance of store layout and offers a plan a gram service to its members.  Drawing in industry expert advice, we are helping newsXpress members develop new in-store plans around stationery which drive sales.  Product adjacencies, brand promotion and retail theatre are all part of what our experts bring to the table in relaying stationery.

Our intellectual property around our approach to stationery is exclusive.  It is another reason why we see newsXpress members embracing the model perform so well in the stationery department.

At our Annual Conference on the Gold Coast later this month we will share some insights into our approach on stationery which will further propel newsXpress newsagents to greater success.

Managing magazines in-store

magazineheader.JPGMagazines are important to newsagencies, even more so in newsXpress. From our exclusive MPA category coded magazine header cards through to our unique loyalty program, we actively work this category to our advantage by delivering to our members a cohesive group of strategies and tactics which generate store traffic, increase basket size and make the magazine customer more valuable.

Our intellectual property around magazines is valuable as the results achieved by our members shows. newsXpress newsagents can bank of the success of magazines, for many it is a key financial justification for joining the group.

While others see magazines as a chore, the newsXpress magazine ‘system’ is delivering excellent results and providing our network with an excellent point of difference.

Win a watch for Dad

nx_hallmark.JPGnewsXpress stores are each offering a watch for one lucky Dad this Father’s Day.  Run in association with Hallmark, this competition is popular because it offers a prize at the store level.  Newsagents tell us this is important, that one of their customers is guaranteed to win.  The watch promotion is another way newsXpress newsagencies are playing in a different space to many others.  While the watch is on offer to Hallmark Alliance Program newsagents, newsXpress members are part of the Alliance program for no cost – this is a key deliverable from joining newsXpress.

A typical newsXpress store, embracing all of the marketing and support in the greeting card space, will achieve same store year on year sales growth in the double digits without giving away margin.  newsXpress offers a host of strategies which guide this outcome.

At our national conference later this month on the Gold Coast we will share some confidential insights into the greeting card market and seek to help our members power even further ahead in this important category.

Cars for dad

dadsgifts.JPGnewsXpress members are reporting excellent results from the range of gifts sourced exclusively for members for this Father’s Day. Even newsagents who have been in gifts before have been surprised by the results. The Kombi van book ends have been very popular, selling out in several stores already.

newsXpress has several strategies for members which help them reach into new product categories. These strategies feed into a cohesive whole of business plan. Father’s Day 2008 is another step forward in our overall plan to help newsXpress newsagents build stronger, more viable and more valuable businesses.

The book ends have been helped along by the Father’s Day book sale running in some stores at the same time.

Visual merchandising for newsagents

pw_dopublea.jpgHaving the right product on the shop floor is important. Landing it there for a good price is another. What you do with this product once it gets there is even more important. Too often in newsagencies we see opportunities lost because of poor in-store displays. This is a topic which will receive attention at the newsXpress conference on the Gold Coast next month. We have an expert in the visual merchandising field presenting at the conference. We also have members showing off their best displays and network with colleague newsagents, discussing what works in their business and what does not.

At newsXpress we are committed to helping our members from the back of the shop right through to the front. There is where the newsXpress offer is unique. We take a whole of business approach and bring energy and excitement into play to achieve the results many newsagents miss even though they may do some good buying.

Welcome Pelican Waters

pw.JPGnewsXpress thrilled to welcome the new shop at Pelican Waters which had its Grand Opening last weekend. Karen Sutton from newsXpress was on hand to train the team and provide support for the opening.

Store openings are an important part of the newsXpress process. They help newsagents put the past behind them and focus on building a brighter future for the business around the principles of newsXpress. This is where our in-store training is important.  It brings the owners and their team together and focuses on the newsXpress difference.  Our experts are able to draw on considerable experience from other stores and offer a range of strategies around which the business can grow in the future.

Suppliers get behind our store openings by providing prizes, marketing material and other support. They are keen to help our members and our group. This is because a newsXpress store, for many suppliers, will deliver above industry average sales growth.

Karen is our national account manager, handling all newsXpress prospect inquiries. If you are interested in newsXpress, please make contact with Karen.

Promoting Dad’s Nuts

dn.JPGThe newsXpress exclusive Dad’s Nuts promotion for Father’s Day is working very well across our stores. This exclusive product from Morish is popular with newsXpress customers and team members. In the Father’s Day gift bag there is a selection of tasty Morish product along with a discount coupon for a future purchase.

newsXpress is pleased to offer this and other exclusive deals for Father’s Day.

Changes at newsXpress

newsXpress CEO, Mark Nagy, is moving to a consulting role with the group following his recommendation to the Board that the company recruit a new CEO for the next phase of growth for this 150 member strong newsagency marketing group.

Mark Nagy served as CEO of newsXpress for three years from late 2005 and oversaw membership growth from 35 locations to in excess of 150 locations and employee growth from two to twelve.

“I have enjoyed my time with newsXpress and working with newsagents immensely” commented Mark Nagy, “I am passionate about newsXpress and feel that the next phase of its growth is best pursued with a new CEO. I am pleased to be able to continue to contribute to the group.”

“Mark Nagy’s contribution to newsXpress has been invaluable,” commented Graham Randall, founding Director of the newsXpress group, “driving us to look outside the traditional newsagency channel for revenue and business opportunities.  We wish him well with his next career move.”

The company is undertaking a strategic review in advance of conducting a search for a new CEO to lead the group.  Mark Nagy has been retained by the Board in a consulting role.

Father’s Day at newsXpress

fday08.JPGIn addition to actively promoting greeting cards this Father’s Day, newsXpress stores have a host of gift offers which are supported by exclusive in-store collateral.  Our stores have material to promote albums, shredders, confectionery, bookends and desk sets – all items suitable for gifts for Dad on Father’s Day.  The posters were provided free of charge.  Each is printed in colour double sided and is A2 in size.

The products being promoted on the posters were selected by the newsXpress merchandise team for their suitability for the season and the margin they deliver.

Our mission is to help our members achieve a more valuable shopping basket.  We are doing this through better buying, better in-store and out-of-store marketing andbringing new products which fit naturall with the typical newsXpress shopper.

As with all seasons, we will track the results of our offers and invite member feedback.  This helps to continue to refine our offer.