We are continuing to enjoy an excellent diary and calendar season with sales up more than 40% year on year for both. We are still at full price and will be for calendars until January 1, 2012 and for diaries forever – we don’t discount these.
I am disappointed by the retailers, including newsagents, who are discounting calendars right now. There is no need. Okay, maybe the cheap calendars of poor quality could be discounted. But not the quality product, especially that catering to special interests including dog breeds.
I see discounting diaries and calendars right now as a message of weakness from the retailer.
We are doing nothing out of the ordinary:
- Great positioning of a regularly refreshed display.
- A focus on quality product, brand names preferably.
- Clear pricing.
- Great customer service.
While there are other outlets selling calendars and even discounting near us, we are having, as I noted, a terrific year.
We have been retailing with Brown Trout
for some time now (calendars) and we are
also having a bumper year for calendars
and diaries.
My diaries are from Ancol, Distinguished
Diaries, Last diary company, and Paper Blanks (gorgeous diaries). They all represent excellent markup and margin as
opposed to the magazine diaries which have been absolutely disastrous in my store this year through no fault of the publishers.
The distributors lost my bulks of delicious,
country style, gardening, Frankie (shortage) and AWW Health diary.
It is disgraceful that the packing of this
product and the delivery of same is so poor. I don’t know about other states but SA obviously has a diary “outlet” somewhere that someone????? knows about and the “skimming” of the product
is blatant and obvious and should be attended to ASAP.
It is so obvious that diaries have been targeted for “other areas” than their invoice destination and the publishers should be askance at the revelation.
I’m not that concerned about the diaries
themselves because the markup isn’t good
enough for my premises but the customer
service part of my business has been eroded because of the cowboy approach
to deliveries in this state.
When you report it as missing you get “let Network know” or “let GG know”
and that seems to be the end of their
responsibility.
I have received credits from the companies
for the product but that is not my point.
Oh! I forgot that they lost my dolly diaries
too – I smell a rat with the whole deal.