BUILD THE PERFECT RANGE FOR YOUR STORE

Retailers should know which core areas they need to cover, and which specialist titles will perform well in their store when added to their core range. 

Rachel Bohanna, head of retail at Marketforce, tells Better Retailing that retailers should stock the “big five” key sectors which “account for 80% of overall revenue”: women’s interest, TV listings, children’s, puzzles and current affairs. 

She adds that Marketforce advises retailers to refine their range based on their customer profile and location, with a top-selling magazine from each sector that their customer base would be interested in.  She says retailers should ensure they split shelf space between “high-performing sectors” and “a selection of more niche titles to offer choice”. 

When introducing specialist titles, however, retailers need to know the makeup of not just their store’s overall demographic, but also what portion of that demographic would be interested in becoming a regular magazine reader. 

With schemes such as Just Ask available to make sure retailers can sell any title without needing to devote shelf space to a huge range, it’s more important than ever to make sure the magazine rack itself is geared towards attracting the customers who will regularly come in to buy a magazine. 

“The People’s Friend reader is an ideal customer for independent retailers,” Iain McKenzie, head of circulation for magazines at DC Thomson, explains. “Many are loyal to their local newsagent, choosing to support their local store, rather than subscribing, or buying from a supermarket. They are also two times more likely to buy a newspaper every day, often arranging to have their People’s Friend delivered along with their newspaper.” 

Puzzler Media’s head of innovation, Shameem Begg, agrees, commenting: “Customers that shop locally will frequently have different motivations. They want to support local businesses and tend to approach their shopping with more flexibility, meaning they browse. This offers a golden opportunity to drive impulse buys.” 

REPLENISH YOUR RANGE FOR EVERY EVENT AND SEASON 

Magazine sales are highly seasonal, and updating the range regularly to account for current trends and seasonal topics will keep customers invested. 

“For puzzles, it’s all school holiday times,” Begg explains. “People have more leisure time on their hands, which often means they prefer pursuits that give them digital down-time, such as reading and completing their favourite puzzles.” 

Mark Dudden, owner of Albany Road Post Office in Cardiff, tells Better Retailing he sees a boost in sales of kids’ magazines and collectables throughout school holidays and into the beginning of term, so he makes sure to always stock up. “Parents come in with their kids and buy something as a little treat. When they go back to school, something like a pack of Pokémon cards is what they can buy as a little reward for doing well in the first week.” 

You can also keep an eye out for current events or occasions which magazines can capture, such as political events, major music tours and even anniversaries of historical events. Publishers often take advantage of these to sell higher-priced magazines, which retailers should always be looking out for. 

McKenzie says: “Bumper issues can increase revenues by up to 40% on The People’s Friend, and newsagents should definitely look to support these.” 

EXCLUSIVE: Magazine distributors Frontline & Seymour to merge operations

MAKE YOUR DISPLAY EXCITING 

“Having a clear, full-facing display is my top piece of advice,” Begg says. “Magazine sections have the potential to fall foul by being overstocked and messy.” She adds that retailers should make sure covermounted gifts or similar promotions are visible, as well as eye-catching covers. 

“Position magazines in high-traffic areas of the store,” Bohanna adds. “Implement clear and distinct categorisation to facilitate effortless navigation and help customers find the magazine that meets their needs.” 

In a store with more space, magazine ranges can be made into a feature, or even broken up with other categories to make a noteworthy display.  “We’ve got a big store at 4,000sq ft on two floors, so we have the ability to create in-store theatre and bespoke destination displays,” explains Bill Palmer, owner of Magazine Heaven in Rushden Lakes, Northamptonshire. 

“We may have an Alice in Wonderland-themed display, where we have books, notepads, games, playing cards, bookmarks and book lights all there. We think it pays to be a little bit creative and do it differently.” 

One of the major suppliers Magazine Heaven uses to source interesting looking items to build these creative displays is If PLC, a bookish gift supplier that provides everything from book lights to handbags. 

“We do really well in gift shops, garden centres and the upmarket magazine stores like Magazine Heaven,” says If’s sales director, Steve Mumford. “We offer impulse gifts, and sometimes it can be an impulse gift for yourself. It’s indulgent for a pretty cheap price.” 

THE ‘MAGAZINE PLUS’ CONCEPT 

The biggest successes of recent years have been from retailers expanding their magazine ranges into a ‘magazines plus’ section, with tools and accessories to accompany their most-successful magazine categories. 

Judith Mercer, owner of Hamilton News in Belfast, tells Better Retailing she has started selling Warhammer figurines alongside the partworks, which had been successful in her store. “People who are into Warhammer will buy both,” she says. “I’ve set up a WhatsApp group which lets them know whenever the latest arrival is in store.” 

Begg recommends thinking about accessories. “I can’t solve a puzzle magazine without three key items: a trusty pencil, an endless stream of coffee and an unlimited supply of biscuits,” she says. “If any of these essentials are on offer, then even better. It’s all about creating the perfect puzzle-solving experience.” 

Retailers can also look outside of existing magazine brands to find perfect additions to their range. James Wheeler, sales manager for Search Press, says the book supplier’s hobby titles are a great way to boost basket spend around craft titles. 

“We have everything from kids’ drawing books to high-cost crochet and embroidery guides,” he says. In particular, he highlights Search Press’ Granny Squares card boxes, which are boxes of cards with each having a crochet pattern for a different granny square. These can be used to make a huge range of items. “It was a new concept for us. We released them last August, and we’ve already sold over 100,000. It’s a unique concept that we weren’t sure was going to work, but it’s been hugely successful,” he says. 

Fibre crafts titles are currently selling well due to the high price of patterns online, so getting buyers to splash out on an additional product like these cards or just new crochet hooks, yarn or knitting needles, can be a great way to bring in more revenue. 

MAKE SOCIAL MEDIA BRING PEOPLE TO YOU 

Collectables supplier Fanatics head of retail Simon Rosenberg tells Better Retailing that even small stores can generate social media buzz by creating an environment where people want to share their purchases right there and then. 

He points out that Fanatics’ own store in London has multiple “breaking tables” where shoppers are encouraged to open packs of collectables and share the results on their own social media pages, and that just one small space for this could encourage people to get just as excited about their local convenience store. 

“We want everybody to feel part of what ‘breaking’ is about,” he said. “We’ve got somewhere to throw away the wrappers, a space to charge phones, wi-fi for customers, and a space to make and share that content.” 

Collectables can be a real booster area for social media engagement, especially when a customer gets lucky with a find in your store. However, magazines can also pull in attention online. Retailer Eugene Diamond, of Diamond’s News in Ballymena, County Antrim, recently told Better Retailing about a customer driving 20 miles across Northern Ireland to buy a special magazine that he had shared on X, having not been able to find it in any stores closer to their home. 

To let customers know what magazines are in stock, it can be as easy as photographing the covers of new arrivals and posting them to your existing social media pages. 

For more specialised materials, retailers can follow the publishers of their top-selling magazines on social media and repost the promotional content for their upcoming titles, or go to betterretailing.com/just-ask to find an archive of promotional material about upcoming magazines, which they can save and share themselves. 

Read more news and advice about the newspaper and magazines category and click here for the latest ABC circulation figures