I’m a fan of brands and prefer a branded product over a cheap copy because national and international brands support their products with advertising which helps us turn stock sooner.
I was discussing this recently with a newsagent around an alternative they said they had to the internationally successful Sylvanian Families. Sure the product they sourced was cheaper. However, it had to be sold for less due to poor packaging and product quality and due to the ‘brand’ being unknown.
Buying products for your newsagency on price alone can be false economy. Take Synlavian Families, the products in the range are supported with a strong narrative, consistent TV advertising, excellent in-store collateral, product quality and good packaging. This makes them appealing to kids as well as to collectors – who can be your most valuable shoppers.
When I consider a new supplier I want to know what they are doing beyond their products in-store to help drive traffic and sales. When it comes to cheap unknown brands the answer is usually nothing.