Newsagents, and just about any small business retailer, often complain about rent. Many who do complain do not know their occupancy cost. This is the ratio of rent to product sales where product sales include agency commission.
Knowing your occupancy cost is key to every discussion you can have on rent.
Here is the advice I have provided previously on occupancy cost:
Occupancy cost: between 9% and 11% of revenue where revenue is product revenue plus commission from agency lines. Location and situation are a big factor in this benchmark. For example, a large shopping centre business will have a higher cost than a high street situation.