Card company representatives usually reorder cards for newsagents. Unless told otherwise by the newsagent, they set the criteria. Some reorder when a pocket has three cards left, others two and few on one. The best way to see if this works for you is to look at your card pockets and count how many have more than six cards.
If you have many card pockets with more than six cards, record the details: the number of pockets with seven, the number of pockets with eight and so on.
Next, check your card storage area – the back room, drawers and elsewhere. How much stock do you have which is not on display? How long has it not been on display?
Some newsagents doing this will find oversupply others will find a card supply model working for them. A better approach is to treat this as a business challenge – meet with your card suppliers, agree on ground rules and become engaged in the card department.
While the card department is one of the best margin departments in a newsagency, it is often the one receiving the least attention from the newsagent. This needs to change. The more we engage with our greeting card suppliers, usually the better the performance off the department. This is a great turnaround opportunity.
To answer the question at the top of the post, look at your card sales. Most newsagencies I see could cope with ordering when down to one card in a pocket. Just this move alone will improve cash flow.
WE CHANGED TO A SMALLER CARD COMPANY EARLY LAST YEAR. WE NOW HAVE TOTAL CONTROL OF OUR CARDS. NO BOXES TURNING UP. NO OVER SUPPLY. GOOD RELATIONSHOP WITH REP. AND BEST OF ALL GREAT CARD SALES.
NEXT YEAR CONTRACT WITH HALLMARK EXPIRED AND I AM NOT GOING TO RENEW ANYMORE WITH ANYBODY. I OWN MY OWN CONTROL. I HAVE ENOUGH WITH THESE CARD COMPANIES WHO ALWAYS OVERSUPPLY. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.
WE work on 1 card only and it works well ,sometimes we have an odd pocket or 3 empty . We are working out of 830 pockets plus 380 other, includes seasons,next to nothing in credits and the stock is always clean and saleable . Note Big W has cut their prmo pockets back only less space same sales. Right on Mark.
We have a great relationship with our mrechandiser who does the orders, she orders on 1’s and empties and informs us of each orders total.
We have full control over what comes through our doors, and noone places orders unless they are double checked by us first. If orders arrive that we have not oked then we refuse to accept them and ring the supplier to come pick up their goods.
More good advice. Thank you. I used to leave cards for others but I learnt my lesson. Now it is my main focus.