This week in magazines: New partworks can conquer your sales
Conquer your sales with these new partworks
Conquer your sales with these new partworks
Hachette says its new partwork, which focuses on the hugely popular Warhammer 40,000 tabletop wargame, will generate £630.20 per customer, so get it in for your customers
On sale 29 August
Frequency weekly
Price £1.99 (1st issue), £4.99 (2nd issue), £7.99 (subsequent issues)
Distributor Marketforce
Display with Warhammer 40k: Legends Coll’n, 2000 AD: The Ultimate Coll’n, Assassin’s Creed: The Official Coll’n
A 31-year-old tabletop wargame produced by British company Games Workshop, Warhammer 40,000 is set in a dystopian sci-fi fantasy universe. The company made £158.1m revenue in 2017, so it’s no surprise Hachette continues to revisit that franchise when launching partworks.
Warhammer 40,000: Conquest is a collection of figurines composed of 80 different miniatures and models from the sci-fi universe, and every issue includes a model alongside brushes or paints with helpful guides on how to use them. Hachette expects each complete collection to wield £630.20 in retailer revenue per customer, so make the most of this launch.
This week in My week in magazines we take a look at how partwork magazines can drive long-term revenue
On sale 29 August
Frequency fortnightly
Price £2.99 (1st issue), £5.99 (2nd issue), £10.99 (subsequent issues)
Distributor Marketforce
Display with Warhammer 40,000 Conquest
On sale 30 August
Frequency monthly
Price £5.49
Distributor Frontline
Display with Amateur Photographer, Outdoor Photography, Digital Camera
On sale out now
Frequency monthly
Price £4.80
Distributor Frontline
Display with Classic & Sports Car, The Automobile, Classic Car Weekly
On sale out now
Frequency monthly
Price £3.50
Distributor Intermedia
Display with Royal Life, Royalty
On sale out now
Frequency monthly
Price £4.75
Distributor Seymour
Display with Carp-Talk, Total Carp, Carpology
On sale out now
Frequency monthly
Price £4.99
Distributor Marketforce
Display with Sparkle, Pink, Go Girl, Girl Talk
On sale out now
Frequency monthly
Price £5.50
Distributor Intermedia
Display with Classic Cars, Motorsport
On sale 30 August
Frequency monthly
Price £4.50
Distributor Frontline
Display with T3, Stuff, Men’s Fitness
On sale out now
Frequency monthly
Price £3.50
Distributor Marketforce
Specialist Choice
Joe Sweeney, News Centre, Donaghmede
Who buys it?
It’s usually bought by shoppers aged between 30 and 60 – but this summer, all kinds of people. Puzzle magazines in general have been selling really well for us this summer.
How do you display it?
I keep them on a floor display by the magazine section throughout the whole of summer.
Partworks have experienced a revival over the past year, with several titles launching and many others doing well. This month alone, four different partworks are entering the market, including the ever-profitable car miniatures collections, a Deadpool comic book series and the niche War-hammer 40,000 universe.
According to publisher Hachette, the partworks market grew 7.7% between 2017 and 2018 – a welcome change of pace compared to the declining magazine market. Physical collections offer something internet content can’t provide, giving retailers a somewhat reliable source of income if they manage to snag even a couple of loyal buyers.
It is important to not ignore partworks, largely because they offer the potential of long-term revenue. There are steps retailers can take to maximise sales, including offering to save future issues or order back issues and continuing to advertise partworks for two weeks after launch instead of returning unsold copies early. With a little bit of research and clever positioning of both old and new titles, newsagents can turn the dedicated fans of those niche collections into loyal repeat customers.
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