The Art Therapy partwork launches Monday next week. Courtesy of Gordon & Gotch, here is a poster you can print for customers to colour in.
You could also use this poster in online marketing to leverage the most from this launch.
My suggestion is you start your marketing for this immediately, ahead of the launch of the title as none of your competitors are likely to do this.
Laughter is an instant vacation.
Milton Berle, 1977.
I was reminded of this a couple of times today. First up I noticed the quote on a sign in a coffee shop devoid of laughter and devoid of good coffee for that matter. What is the point of a sign pitching a message of inspiration in your business when you ignore it?
Later in the morning I visited Hamleys, the biggest and best known toy store in London, to see their merchandising of ranges I am connected with back in Australia.
On every floor at Hamleys I heard laughter from kids and adults as they interacted with demonstrations of products ranging from magic tricks to drones to art kits. The demonstrators, and I lost count at fifteen throughout the store, were engaging and funny.
Visiting Hamleys was a tonic. I found myself smiling plenty as I walked the various floors. I had a good laugh when one demonstrator had some fun with a drone at my expense.
The whole experience was a reminder of the importance of laughter in retail.
I imagine there are people who work nearby who visit Hamleys for a reset during a particularly tough day. Leaving the store today I wanted to suggest to the folks at the coffee shop they visit.
I noticed this Pictorial History of World War 11 is exclusive to WH Smith – there is a sticker in the top right corner. With over 1,000 retail outlets, WH Smith can make a compelling pitch to publishers not only in terms of retail critical mass but also in terms of discipline across their retail network.
I saw this in a WH Smith in London today, the launch issue (a re-launch actually as this has been out before I’m told) of Build A Precision Mechanical Solar System, a new partwork. The first issue here is 99p – A$2.18 on the current exchange rate. I expect we will see it in Australia sometime. It would sell well. Merchandising issue 1 would be easy as it is less bulky that other partworks.
I am in London at the moment and an seeing even more adult colouring magazines and books than when I was in the UK a month ago.
This photo shows the range I saw near the counter of a WH Smith store on Oxford Street today. Deeper into the business they had a large range of adult colouring magazines in their magazine department. Even more interesting, none of the high street newsagents I visited today has adult colouring magazines.
What is interesting is that I noticed few bookshops and card shops with adult colouring titles than a few weeks ago. However, it is hard to tell if this is a trend because a few weeks ago I did not get to London.
My advice to newsagents is to be thoughtful when ordering. Adult colouring will peak. You do not want to be loaded with stock when that happens.
We have been moving the CDU for K-Zone and Total Girl magazine to locations relevant to the target reader of the titles. This week we have it placed behind kinetic sand. This position is passed y all who head to the counter. Thoughtful placement can help drive sales. Units like this CDU can help us create space that otherwise might not be useful.
