Christmas in July is growing in popularity in retail businesses. It can provide a good retail focus and sales kick in between major seasons. It is an opportunity to move stock while having fun with Christmas out of season.
Christmas in July is an excellent opportunity for newsagencies.
A couple of years ago we moved in excess of $2,000 in boxed Christmas cards at a 75% margin. Our Christmas boxed cards later in the year were stronger than ever so the July promotion did not pull forward sales.
A Christmas in July promotion could be as simple as a sale based around the season or it could be a fully integrated campaign covering the whole of the business.
Christmas in July is a particularly useful campaign if you sell items which would help with celebrations in the home or if you sell items which work as Christmas gifts. While the opportunity is promoted as Christmas in July, it is a chance to get some early Christmas sales happening – ahead of most other retailers.
Check with your local council or business association as to what they have on – more and more are running Christmas in July events. be sure to check with charities too. A quick search online shows plenty do. Talk to suppliers to see whether they have anything which could help you embrace the opportunity.
Remember, the real focus of a Christmas in July promotion is to increase sales. Every move made as part of the campaign must progress this opportunity.
- Run the Christmas in July campaign over no more than two weeks in July. One week could be enough.
- Choose dates which are away from any other promotion – it works best with little competition.
- Get all employees together, seek their ideas and explain the value of the season you are creating.
- Set aside a defined space in-store for promoting stock connection with the season.
- Dress the team and the store to suit the Christmas theme.
- Display any spare Christmas stock from last year.
- Play Christmas music.
- Choose a day for an extra special celebration and make this an all-out focus.
- Have a competition for the kids around the theme. This could be a coloring competition – offer to display their works of art as parents and family will visit to see.
- Create a giant Christmas stocking which one lucky customer can win.
- Use the event to discount slow moving items – try and create a real sense of bargains.
- Promote the event using a flyer to houses around your location – it is a great way to draw people into your shop. On the flyer, promote the activities and any specials.
- Call the local paper and get their attention.
Christmas in July is an excellent opportunity to get suppliers on board. Maybe they could provide products for you to give away as gifts – I.E. every shopper gets spending over $10 a ‘Christmas’ gift. Suppliers could use your promotion as an ideal time for trialling products and getting your customers engaged.
Events like Christmas in July are all about giving people a reason to visit your newsagency. Making the event fun and relevant to the season (winter) should make it a winner for you.
Mark this is brilliant advice. I was just thinking last week about doing christmas in july this year. Thanks for sharing the tips. Any more would be appreciated.
This is why I like the blog. I get new ideas and the occasional wake up call.
PS I thought the fin review article was good and my business is on the market.
Anthony why do you think it was so good ?not knocking your opinion but just interested as to why you think it was so good especially when you are trying to sell your business
It is good because it gave me more ideas than I had thought of, for free. Why do you ask?
I ask because i see it different , if i was buying a newagency and seen what these forcast figures where i would not be buying one . I understand that yes those that have one now need to look at other avenues to build there business and i have no problem with that but why would any one think of buying something that is pretty much looking like being dead in 10 years . If what Mark is saying is going to happen wouldn’t you just buy a coffee shop with gifts . Trying not to be negative but i just don’t see why anyone would look at buying a newsagency when you look at what is predicted . I personallly would buy another newsagency as for me personally i have not yet seen these mass changes happening yet . My mag sales have increased over the years my paper sales have increased and so has my lotto . i might get 1 or 2 people a year apply to do there lotto online and that goes the same with papers in the last year i have had one person tell me that they get there content for papers from online but yet they still have to come in and get the local paper because that will never be online . This is probally the difference of being in a small town and not in a city
Shaun – I see where you are coming from – Your last sentence maybe the difference, I enjoy reading your posts from a Geographical point of view.
Shaun S,
Can I ask which small town or area of the country your in? We’re in what many would consider a small town in the Hunter Valley (20 something thousand population of which we service something in the vicinity of 10K) and definetely see the declining tends in old media (although not as much in magazines which I put down to our position inside a supermarket that that us to very heavily leverage foot traffic and impulse buys). Our local paper has been online for many years.
Maybe it’s your demographic? Small towns generally have an older population unless they’re connected with mining or industry (which ours is).
Jarryd , a small town in north qld population about 13 thousand and generally most our customers are retired or should be retired . the closest “city” would be 100ks away .
Shaun, I opened my latest newsagency just over a year ago in the face of the forecast. These are days of opportunities for innovation.
Anthony, thanks for the kind comments on the marketing tip for Christmas in July.
Mark i to would open another newsagency tomorrow given the chance but i was more talking about someone thinking about coming into the industry and hearing that all is coming to an end . We know it is not but for any jo blow out there looking in would think otherwise .
Shaun, no one has said it is coming to an end.
sorry but if i was an out sider looking at the artical in the FR and see a 70% decline in sales of papers and lotto sales going down and mag sales going down i would think it is coming to an end .
But as a newsagent already i see huge potential in the newsagency for many years to come .
put yourself on the other side of the fence would you buy into something that you basically have to change your whole shop because what you are actually buying will be dropping of by as much as 70% in the next 10 years. i wouldn’t
Shaun, people are buying newsagencies. I was talking with someone yesterday who is about to settle, having negotiated a price which is a 3x multiple of EBIT.
Some people are glass half empty and some are glass half full.
not sure what you mean by the last sentence .
Hey if there selling great
Shaun the reaction to the AFR article has been fascinating and educational. Around three quarters of people say it’s terrific and positive – even those outside the channel. They see opportunity. Around 25% see the article as negative against newsagents. They see collapse.
I think that the current conditions make buying a newsagency now terrific … an excellent opportunity.
i know i am on the negative side but i will admit that i am glad to see that most think it is positive .