Gifts

The Lolita brand wine glasses we got in for Christmas will sell out with just one left in stock.  This unusual Christmas item is terrific because it has usually been purchased on impulse.  A $19.95 impulse purchase item is pretty nice.  The margin is solid.  Selling out of Christmas items like this before having to actually pay for the stock is nice.

Christmas sales have been excellent so far this year.  We are onto our third order of boxed Christmas cards and have sold out of many of the gift lines we purchased and we still have more than two weeks of trading to go.

Check out the TVC from Hallmark for their interactive Jingle product.  It shows how the book and the dog interact.

Grandparents especially love this product. The TVC started at the weekend on Seven and Nine.

Jingle the Dog, part of the Hallmark Christmas range has been promoted in News Limited newspapers this week as one of the top gadgets for Christmas.  This publicity coupled with the TV campaign promoting Jingle which starts on the weekend is terrific for the many newsagents and other retailers with Jingle.

We are making the most of the opportunity with a refreshed display for Jingle.

Media coverage like this is terrific to put these gadgets on the radar of shoppers who otherwise might not have considered them.

We are leveraging the Junior MasterChef TV Show with the Junior MasterChef board game as part of our Christmas grift product mix.

This is another example of our commitment to and support of big brands.  I see this as vital in newsagency businesses.  A brand strategy will deliver more value for us that the alternative – chasing the dissent shops down the path of cheap China product.  There is little loyalty in the deep discount space as price is your only differentiator.

While there is a risk that a major will come along and whack you on price for a big brand product, the key is to land the product with some flexibility with which to respond to this.  However, it is rare that a major would deeply discount a big brand item for the whole of the season.  This is where watching their activity is vital.  By choosing your time you can make excellent margins off products like this.

The other value in big brand products like the Junior MasterChef board game is that it is recognisable.  This makes for easier shopping, faster decisions.

Our selection of Beanie Kids products are proving to be an early hit in Christmas sales.  The display attracts attention for other products placed nearby … this is the value of promoting such a well known brand.

What is especially appealing about the Beanie Kids success is that the advertising capping has not yet hit so most purchases are on impulse by shoppers visiting for other items.  Very nice margin dollars added to sales!

While Christmas for us this year is built on traditional offers of cards and wrap, our rang of gifts goes outside the traditional for a newsagency.  We decided to concentrate on these rather than Christmas trinkets and decorative items given our proximity to variety stores and supermarkets.  We have found that being different works better for us.

As with most gift purchases, most of our buying for christmas has been outside traditional newsagency suppliers.

As I blogged recently, we have been having some fun with a range of ‘pills’ like this one.  While it looks like a pill, it is actually a 10cm long foam stress ball – for the hypochondriac.  Shoppers laugh when they get what the product is.  Some then proceed to list who it would be ideal for.

Sales have been good – from a very simple hang sell display on a gift table facing into the shopping mall.

I like this type of product because it offers an unexpectedly enjoyable experience to most who notice it.  It is bound to help drive good word of mouth for our business too.  Plus, it broadens our range of gifts.

Gifts can mean so many things from the high end item for the home through to this simple and inexpensive stress ball.

We have been promoting the Hallmark recordable storybook range behind the counter for the last couple of weeks. This stunning display features the range of these popular interactive gifts. We decided to use this high profile space to promote the recordable storybooks at this time to tie in with the national TV campaign funded by Hallmark.

The Hallmark Recordable Storybooks have created a new product niche for us. While others have tried to copy them, they have not succeeded in my view. You know you’re on a winner when someone comes back for their second or third purchase.

It only took a few weeks but the range of Angry Birds products we brought in last month has sold through.  It’s been a terrific success, bringing in new shoppers.  A brilliant range we are sure to carry again.

I wrote here recently about the challenges we are having selling the chess themed salt and pepper grinders.  Not wanting to give up on a product in which they believe, our team found a way to make them look more appealing – by better connecting with the chess theme.  This change in display has helped move some additional stock without deep discounting.

I was pleased to see the team try this more creative approach rather than the planned price reductions.