I have seen industry wide sales data for the toy category for the year to May 2019. It is interesting to see a good result for games in this as it is a category with which newsagents can easily engage.
Diving deeper, it is fascinating to see terrific diversity in the games mix. While well known titles like Monopoly and Cards Against Humanity are doing well, lesser known, niche, titles are working well too. Table top games are proving to be especially successful.
I see strong opportunities in the games space, opportunities for a permanent (or as permanent as can be) space allocation in store for games.
What is interesting abut the games shopper is that they are loyal, appreciate product knowledge, appreciate range and will participate in in-store events. These are all attribute we can lean into in newsagency businesses. We can leverage them and drive greater success.
Core to success is shop floor engagement. This means having a table setup with a game on it for people playing. This simple move drives impulse purchases, even if people do not often play the game as setup. I see it every time. Put in a table with a gameosetup and sales lift, immediately. If you are in the game space, do this. Even if you don’t have room. Make room and see the sales growth.
if you are not in the games space, consider it. However, success depends on the right range, displayed well (not necessarily;y pretty), pitched on social media and backed with occasional in-store events. It is an interactive product category after all.
Thinking of my work with newsXpress, there are seven suppliers offering range, competitive pricing, first to market opportunities and terrific product knowledge … enabling indie retailers to compete with major retailers as well as the top franchises.