SHOP OWNERS: YOUR CHANCE TO WIN £50 EVERY WEEK P7 » Is your shop missing these new Walkers, Doritos, Pepsi, Mountain Dew and Coca-Cola products? SALES OPPORTUNITY p8
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Grab £1,600 weekly sales with these BuzzBallz, Moth and other hot-topic premix cocktails WHAT SHOPPERS WANT p26
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KNOW MORE, SELL MORE, MAKE MORE ● 09.10.2026 ● £3.45
Why these oftenmissed gift ideas and extras add £7,000 to stores’ weekly sales l From sparklers and toys to mugs and
perfumes, retailers reveal simple add-ons proven to drive sales
l How to turn your existing products
into a brand-new gifting range Page 22 »
DEPOSIT RETURN SCHEME
Stores’ DRS countdown begins With just one year left to prepare, retailers must register their stores now p4 » p1 Cover 9th October.indd 1
STORE PROFILE
‘We take £800 each weekend’
Copy this store’s foodto-go success with doughnuts, samosas and milkshakes p15 »
PROTECT YOUR SALES
Shops react to vape duty impact A week on from this major tax change, this is how stores like yours are reacting p3 »
06/10/2026 14:35
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CONTENTS RN is the only weekly magazine dedicated to independent convenience retailers looking for new profit opportunities and how to stay ahead in a constantly changing retail environment
3 INDUSTRY NEWS
Shops report initial impact and
changes as vape duty comes into force Retailer registrations open for the UK Deposit Return Scheme Magazine publishers launch multimillion-pound campaign to grow your sales
HMRC refuses to reveal success rate in cracking down on rates fraudsters preying on small business owners 8 PRODUCT NEWS
The latest Walkers, Doritos, Pepsi, Mountain Dew and Coca-Cola products to stock
10 PRICEWATCH
The price changes that can make
you £85 extra profit from the topselling rums
14 EXPERT COLUMN
Jonathan Rons explains how stores are missing out on the big gift basket
15 STORE PROFILE
How food to go and milkshakes are powering this One Stop’s weekly success
18 FED FOCUS
How Danny Patel’s family store is benefiting from the Fed’s deals
19 RETAIL SUPPORT
PepsiCo’s guide to building a winning savoury snacks range
21 YOUR VIEWS
‘Late deliveries due to publisher delays are costing me sales’
9 October 2026 RN
f
Follow on Facebook
facebook.com/ThisisRN have your say on the latest news
ENCOURAGING BRANDS TO INVEST IN YOUR STORE
L
ast week, James Retail Group (JRG) hosted its firstever briefing event for its suppliers, and it was a masterclass in how independent shop owners can work with major brands. The brief JRG history is of founder Jonathan James starting with a ramshackle farm shop and turning it into a group of about 40 convenience stores spanning from Bristol to Leeds. His children, Emily and Joshua, gained relevant experience in university and other companies, Editor but are now putting it to use in the family business. Jack Courtez This means groundbreaking use of data. A big headache for suppliers generally is that independent retailjack.courtez@newtrade.co.uk ers are a bit of a nightmare to get to do the same thing 07592 880864 at the same time, because there are 35,000 business owners and each has different priorities. PoS gets distributed, only some goes up; incentives for planograms are made, but have to be policed by expensive reps. New products get released, but most shops don’t stock them. And even if you do all this, the supplier can’t see your sales data, so can’t measure their return on investment. This increases costs and risk, making it harder for suppliers to properly invest in your store and symbol groups, too. Compare that to Tesco. A few conversations and thousands of shops all do the same thing and then report how it worked. JRG has a pretty compelling solution. It uses an app to make every store team send suppliers pictures of planogram and FSDU compliance, meaning no more expensive rep visits. They went through 20,000 lines to associate them with suppliers and brands so sales reports are incredibly detailed. More than this, through AI tool Claude, these reports are custom to suppliers’ needs and generated in seconds. Take, for instance, an offer and PoS with Diageo for Smirnoff Crush for 10 days over a huge music festival near one of their JRG stores. The team knew the sales uplift compared to the week before and how much of this uplift remained afterwards at full price. They could compare this with other stores that didn’t run the campaign to give a fair comparison. This means JRG knows the value every advert, promotion or listing generates for itself and brands. This gives suppliers confidence and a clear case for brand investment in stores. Not everybody will be able to do exactly what JRG is doing, but the independent convenience sector’s information gap with suppliers is closing, and it’s giving you new ways to also turn your store’s data into commercial benefits. For examples, look no further than Better Retailing Club Rewards, Shopt and PayPoint Rewards. Editor
Editor-in-chief
Associate editor
Jack Courtez
Louise Banham
Alex Yau
07592 880864
07587 554136
020 7689 3358
Features editor
News editor
Charles Whitting
Ryan Butcher
Deputy insight & advertorial editor
22 BECOMING A GIFTING DESTINATION
020 7689 3350
proven to be delivering £7,046 per week in stores like yours
Features & advertorial writer
Reporter
Shyama Laxman
07597 588955
Email: editorial@newtrade.co.uk Letters: letters@newtrade.co.uk
Senior production & content editor Ryan Cooper Copy editor Minhaj Zia
Head of commercial Natalie Reeve Circulation & subscriptions Kate Daw Managing director Parin Gohil
Cover image credit: NataliPopova
RN is published by Newtrade Media Limited, which is wholly owned by NFRN Holdings Ltd, which is wholly owned by the Benefits Fund of the National Federation of Retail Newsagents. RN is editorially independent of the NFRN and opinions, comments and reviews included are not necessarily those of the Federation and no warranty for goods or services described is implied. Reproduction or transmission in part or whole of any item from RN may only be undertaken with the prior written agreement of the Editor. Contributions are welcomed and are included in part or whole at the sole discretion of the editor. Newtrade Media Limited accepts no responsibility for submitted material. Every possible care is taken to ensure the accuracy of information.
The selections, brands and extras 26 COCKTAILS AT HOME
How to turn the canned cocktail surge into an at-home sales opportunity
29 BUSINESS INSURANCE
Your complete guide to getting the
07395 260007 Senior designer Jody Cooke Designer Lauren Jackson Production manager Chris Gardner
best value and the best coverage
33 THIS WEEK IN MAGAZINES
Why these tech guides to AI could unlock extra sales for your store
Newtrade Media Limited, 11 Angel Gate, City Road, London EC1V 2SD Tel 020 7689 0600
07837 645281
Kwame Boakye
Printed by Warners Midlands plc Distributor Seymour Distribution, 2 East Poultry Avenue, London, EC1A 9PT
Audit Bureau of Circulations July 2024 to June 2025 average net circulation per issue 8,197
For trade use only
p2 Contents.indd 2
RN’s publisher Newtrade Media cares about the environment.
Jasper Hart
07597 588975
06/10/2026 13:58
NEWS
KEY
Risks for shop owners Opportunity for shop owners
Shops hold on to prices after vape duty begins by Alex Yau alex.yau@newtrade.co.uk
Retailers are holding off on increasing vape prices following the introduction of new duty over fears they could lose customers to nearby competitors. Several store owners said they had bought enough non-duty-paid stock before the new rules came into force on 1 October to last until the end of the year. Dev Patel, of MJs Premier in Royton, Oldham, told RN: “I’ve not increased my prices because it would have an impact on my business. There are two standalone vape shops nearby and a few illicit traders in the area. If customers see me as more expensive, there’s a risk I’ll lose them.” London-based multisite Best-one retailer Kay Patel added: “I’ve been told there’s no shortage of non-duty stock still in the market, and we’ll be comfortable up until the end of this year. Customers haven’t been confused because they’ve seen it in the news. However, that awareness will die down in the coming weeks,
so we need to ensure we keep informing them about duty so there are no sudden surprises when we eventually have to increase pricing.” Multi-site Budgens retailer Seelan Thambirajah shared Dev Patel’s concerns, adding: “The customers will think we’re the ones choosing to increase prices and they’ll get angry with us, when it’s the wholesalers. When we do increase prices, we’ll be looking at a margin increase from 35% to 40%, but sales will likely drop off. Hopefully, the increase in profit will make up for that.” Conversely, one retailer said they had “bitten the bullet”, removing all
promotions and raising prices to reflect the new duty from 1 October. Steve Mosey, chief executive of vaping distributor Phoenix 2 Retail, confirmed to RN there had been “a bit of panic buying” on 30 September. He added: “For an independent retailer, the focus should be on man-
aging a smooth, safe and legal transition, rather than putting all the effort into trying to maintain duty-free stock for as long as possible. “Our advice to retailers going forward is that they will need to be extra vigilant to ensure their stock is coming from legitimate sources.”
NEW VAPING DUTY EXPLAINED • A flat rate of £2.20 applies per 10ml of e-liquid, or 44p for a 2ml pre-filled pod. Including 20% VAT, the additional cost per 10ml is £2.64. Duty applies to e-liquid volume, not puff count. • Bottled e-liquids, pre-filled pods, cartridges and disposable vape liquids are affected. • Retailers and wholesalers have until 31 March to sell through non-duty-paid stock. • All vaping stock purchased from 1 April must have duty paid and carry an approved HMRC duty stamp on the packaging.
Pokémon driving abuse in shops
Retailers limiting sales of highly sought-after Pokémon cards are facing verbal abuse from frustrated customers. Kaual Patel, of Nisa Torridon in south London, told RN: “They’re in high demand, and I’m only selling them to children or parents I know and trust. I’ve had adults come in offering to pay double for all my Pokémon cards, but
p3 Breaking news.indd 3
I’ve refused the sale as I suspect they’re trying to profiteer from them. A few have kicked off, but it’s my store and I can choose who I sell to.” Another independent retailer added: “Pokémon cards are really difficult to get hold of now, so I’ve put restrictions on the amount a customer can buy. I’ve had grumbles, but I’ve told them it’s about ensuring there’s
enough to go around for everyone.” The reports come as Currys has begun removing Pokémon cards from sale at some stores following abuse directed at staff. A notice photographed inside one branch said: “Due to the level of abuse aimed at the colleagues of this store, we will no longer be receiving or selling Pokémon cards in
this store. Do not ask us to check stock levels at this store or other stores as we are not going to pass the abuse onto them. “All CCTV and details have been passed onto the police, and any future examples of this behaviour will also be reported.” The abuse follows instances of burglaries at specialist Pokémon stores.
NEWS & ANALYSIS
3
RN 9 October 2026
Contract extension Post Office (PO) is in the final stages of extending its contract with the DVLA by 18 months, which would allow branches to continue providing vehicle tax and driving licence renewal services until 30 September 2028. In an update to subpostmasters seen by RN, PO said the current contract is due to expire on 31 March 2027, but it has spent the past year working with the DVLA to secure an extension. While the agreement has yet to be formally signed, PO said both parties had signed a “letter of comfort” confirming their intention to extend the contract. It added: “We committed to giving you six months’ notice in case there was any risk of the contract ending. While a risk remains until the extension is signed, we hope to confirm the extension by the end of October, once all required approvals are in place.”
Forecourt footfall Record diesel prices could help forecourt retailers boost in-store sales as motorists switch from filling up to smaller, more frequent top-ups. EdgeData’s latest Forecourt Insight found average fill sizes fell 7.25% during the third quarter, as motorists visited forecourts more often and increasingly spent fixed amounts at the pump. More than a third of transactions were top-ups rather than complete fills, giving retailers more opportunities to turn fuel visits into shop spend. The findings come as diesel prices have reached a record £2 a litre.
06/10/2026 15:23
4
NEWS
PayPoint targets
PayPoint is targeting annual revenue growth of up to 10% from its retailer network as it looks to reverse recent declines. At a series of investor meetings on 29 September, the company said getting stores to offer more of its services, improving retail standards and expanding banking services could grow revenue from its retailer network by 5-10% a year. The target follows a 2% year-on-year fall in these revenues in its annual results for the year ending 31 March, with the decline accelerating to 6.5% in the three months to 30 June. Elsewhere, PayPoint is aiming to recruit more stores to sell its Love2shop vouchers as part of its plans for growth, while a new card merchant offer, Handepay Connect, is due to launch in early 2027. PayPoint chief executive Nick Wiles said the business has “compelling routes to growth”.
Win cash with HND More than 850 independent retailers could be in line for a special delivery this October, with a whopping £10,000-plusworth of prizes up for grabs during Home News Delivery (HND) Month. Run by the Fed, HND Month helps retailers attract new customers and grow their rounds. The campaign includes a daily £200 prize draw, with one retailer selected each day throughout the month. Winners will be announced on the HND Month website and given three days to claim their prize, to be credited through their wholesale news account.
p4 Breaking news.indd 4
9 October 2026 RN
EfC opens first phase of DRS registration by Ryan Butcher ryan.butcher@newtrade.co.uk
Retailers can now begin registering for the UK’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), as preparations ramp up with less than a year to go until its launch in October 2027. It comes as retailers are being urged to work out now whether they want, or are eligible, to be exempt from operating a return point, with DRS International chairman Bill Power warning that “the next year is going to disappear in a heartbeat”. Exchange for Change (EfC), the UK scheme administrator, has opened the first phase of registration, with retailers initially required to provide basic details about their business. A second phase requiring more detailed information is due to open in January. DRS will cover singleuse PET plastic, steel and aluminium drinks containers between 150ml and 3l. Customers will pay a deposit when buying an eligible drink and get it back when they return the empty container. Many convenience retailers will be legally required to accept returns either
manually or through a reverse vending machine (RVM). However, urban retailers with less than 100sqm of retail space will be automatically exempt and do not need to register unless they want to operate a return point voluntarily. Urban stores between 100sqm and 199sqm, as well as rural retailers under 200sqm, can apply for an exemption, but must still register. Power told RN that deciding whether to seek an exemption should be the starting point for independent retailers preparing for DRS. “If you decide to go for an exemption, there isn’t any more preparation needed,” he said. “But if you decide not to get an exemption, or you don’t qualify for an exemption, then you’ve got to get busy on the other points that are really critical.” For those operating a return point, Power urged retailers to start deciding whether to accept containers manually or install an RVM, and consider where returned containers will be stored while awaiting collection. Retailers opting for an
RVM should also check whether they qualify for grant funding and begin looking at suppliers once EfC publishes its approved list. The list is expected in October, but was not published before RN went to press this week. “I would grab the list as soon as it’s available, and get on and try to get my machine ordered because if you wait six months, an awful lot of people are going to get in the queue ahead of you,” Power said. He also urged retailers
to see DRS as a commercial opportunity rather than simply a regulatory burden, describing it as a “once-in-a-lifetime chance to compete for footfall”. Power said stores could attract customers returning drinks bought elsewhere and encourage them to spend their deposits in store. “It’s not the 20p and it’s not the handling fee that you get. It’s what does that customer do with it?” he said.
DRS INFRASTRUCTURE TAKES SHAPE • EfC has appointed five waste management and recycling providers to handle logistics and processing for containers returned through RVMs: SUEZ, CIRQLR, Re.Group with Hargreaves, Bywaters and Re-Gen. • The contracts will support investment in new processing facilities and around 400 collection vehicles ahead of the October 2027 launch. • The appointments cover the RVM and processing tender only. A separate tender for the collection and counting of containers from manual return points remains underway. • EfC told RN the separate process was “on-track”, with further details to be announced in due course. It expects around 90% of containers to be collected through RVMs, based on experience in other markets, although manual collections will still “play a significant role”. • Further updates expected this month from EfC include a list of approved RVMs and the criteria for the £6,000 grants for small shops.
Allwyn pushes FastPay to boost sales
National Lottery operator Allwyn is encouraging retailers to switch more customers to its FastPay service, claiming Lotto players using it spend 37% more on average than Lucky Dip customers. The company is distributing more than 1.5 million limited-edition FastPay wallets to retail partners over the coming weeks to help promote the
service and boost draw game sales. FastPay allows customers to save their chosen numbers or Lucky Dip selections on a reusable card, removing the need to complete a play slip. Cards can store multiple lines, draw days and up to four weeks of play. Retailers can give the wallets to existing FastPay users or offer them to
customers who regularly use play slips. Allwyn said FastPay could also speed up transactions, encourage repeat visits and increase retailer commission. The giveaway comes as Allwyn trials the return of £10 scratchcards, introduces two Lotto lines for £2 instead of one, and brings US lottery game Powerball to the UK.
Head of field sales Karl Southworth said: “We hope this free giveaway helps retailers raise awareness of National Lottery FastPay in their stores, as well as generate some chatter and fun.” He added: “FastPay customers play more frequently and generate more in sales, boosting commission and returns to good causes.”
06/10/2026 12:33
KEY
Risk for shop owners Opportunity for shop owners
Mag publishers unite to promote print in stores by Jack Courtez jack.courtez@newtrade.co.uk
Major magazine publishers have joined forces for the first time in a decade to launch a campaign encouraging shoppers to buy more titles in stores. ‘Magazines: In The World’s Best Interests’, organised by the two major magazine distributors and backed by the Professional Publishers Association (PPA), launched on 1 October and will run for 18 months. The campaign will promote the value of magazines in connecting people with their interests and communities, and the “unique experience” of print. More than £2m in advertising value will be provided by participating publishers Bauer, DC Thomson, Immediate, Future, Hearst, Condé Nast, Anthem, Egmont and New Scientist, which collectively account for most magazine sales in stores. The campaign will include messages in print editions, alongside billboard, radio, podcast and outdoor screen advertising.
The logo and branding to be used in the ongoing campaign Distributors Frontline and Marketforce will also work with retailers to strengthen magazines’ presence on shelves and reinforce confidence in the category. The first phase, known as ‘Editor’s Note’, is already underway, with handwritten-style letters from editors included in magazines, thanking readers for their purchases. More than 200 titles are involved, meaning the messages will appear in most shops’ ranges. The initiative marks a shift from publishers’ recent focus on direct subscriptions, which can compete with retail sales.
It also comes as magazine shelf space faces greater pressure due to TGJones closures and supermarket range cuts. Organisers stressed the campaign is intended to reinforce the value of print magazines to retailers as well as consumers. Ben Oakden, managing director at Marketforce, said: “Retailers see the impact of a well-supported category every day and when publishers invest together, it shows at the point of sale. Promoting physical copies of magazines gives us a genuinely unified message to take into stores, at a time when shelf space is more
contested than ever.” Frontline’s sales and new business director, Phil Melling, added: “Print’s biggest opportunity lies in reminding both retailers and readers of its value, and this campaign helps do that, at scale.” PPA chief executive Sajeeda Merali told RN the next phase of the campaign involves working directly with retailers to “bring it to life at the point of purchase”. She added that discussions between publishers, distributors and retailers this autumn will explore “opportunities for retail activation in 2027”.
BrewDog to increase store visits BrewDog is planning a seven-figure investment in a new field sales operation to expand its presence in independent convenience stores across the UK. The brewer plans to add a team of more than 10 people to support retailers, including van sales, merchandising, point-of-sale materials and advice on growing craft beer sales.
p5 Breaking news.indd 5
Stuart Harrison, chief growth officer at BrewDog, told RN the investment would help the company increase its distribution in convenience, where Punk IPA currently reaches between 30% and 40% of stores. “It goes with education [that] they are probably not currently getting in the craft category,” he said. “It goes with point-
of-sale [material] to help them drive their own revenue and promotions and investments that the team can offer.” Harrison said BrewDog was particularly focused on increasing the availability of Punk IPA and Hazy Jane in independent and managed convenience stores. “We need to focus on the craft category. Hazy yes, but certainly, Punk,
to get the number-one craft beer into as many independent and managed convenience shops as possible.” The investment follows Tilray Brands’ £33m acquisition of BrewDog in March. A launch date has yet to be confirmed, although BrewDog aims to introduce the operation in the short-tomedium term.
NEWS & ANALYSIS
5
RN 9 October 2026
Executive change AF Blakemore chief executive Carol Welch has stepped down after nearly four years in the role, RN can reveal. Welch, who joined the Spar wholesaler in 2023, succeeded Jerry Marwood, following six years as UK and Ireland managing director of cinema chain Odeon. Executive chairman Peter Blakemore will work alongside the company’s executive team to lead the business following her departure. An AF Blakemore spokesperson said: “Carol Welch stepped down from her role on 2 October 2026. “We thank Carol for her leadership and contribution to the business during a significant period of transformation and wish her every success for the future.” Before joining Odeon, Welch held several senior roles at PepsiCo and Cadbury Schweppes Bottling Group.
Beer sales growth Retailers participating in Heineken’s Star Retailer scheme are seeing beer and cider sales grow by 13%, generating up to £11,000 in additional annual sales, the brewer has claimed. Speaking on the Better Retailing Podcast, offtrade field sales manager Sarah Romain said participating stores could also earn up to £600 a year in rewards. Romain said 26 field sales representatives cover a maximum of 5,500 stores across England and Wales. Participating retailers receive six visits annually. Heineken is continuing to recruit stores to the scheme.
06/10/2026 11:59
NEWS & ANALYSIS
6
NEWS
Co-op store sale
Co-op Group has proposed selling 15 convenience stores to address competition concerns over its acquisition of Southern Co-op. The group completed the transfer of engagements of Southern Co-op in July, making it a wholly owned subsidiary, although the deal remains subject to clearance by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The watchdog raised concerns that the acquisition could reduce competition and harm convenience-store shoppers in some local areas where Co-op Group and Southern Co-op stores overlap. The CMA has provisionally found that the proposed sales could address the competition concerns identified and will now examine the plans in greater detail before reaching a final decision. If satisfied, the proposed store sales will resolve the competition issues, the CMA could conditionally clear the deal.
HFSS in Scotland Many stores in Scotland must comply with new display and promotion restrictions on pre-packaged products high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS). The 1 October change bans multibuy offers on affected products at retailers employing 50 or more people. These retailers are also banned from displaying HFSS products at checkouts, queuing areas and entrances in stores with a shop floor larger than 1,999 sq ft. Retailers operating under a symbol or franchise are advised to check with their group to see if they are included.
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9 October 2026 RN
KEY
Risks for shop owners Opportunity for shop owners
HMRC silent on tackling of business rates scams by Jack Courtez jack.courtez@newtrade.co.uk
HMRC has refused to reveal how many complaints it has received about rogue business rates agents or what action it has taken, raising questions about its ability to protect small businesses. The tax authority rejected a Freedom of Information request from RN for how many breaches of HMRC’s agent standards had been reported and the outcome of these reports. Despite similar data being published by police authorities, HMRC claimed releasing the information could harm its ability to investigate breaches as people might “inappropriately” draw conclusions on the likelihood of reporting breaches resulting in action. HMRC said this could “inhibit others from raising concerns regarding potential agent misconduct”. The refusal comes amid frustration from retailers and other business owners, with several alleged victims of business rates scammers telling RN they received no response from HMRC after reporting alleged breaches of standards for business rates
agents. Previous investigations by RN and others have exposed agencies as using deception, unfair contracts and threats to claim thousands of pounds from small business owners. One agent was found to be a convicted violent criminal who had used threats to coerce payments. At the time, the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), now part of HMRC, said: “It is not the responsibility of the VOA to regulate rating agents.” However, following further press investigations into rates agency misconduct, the VOA changed its mind, introducing agent standards in January 2024. In January 2025, it suspended the agents first investigated by RN, but no further enforcement action over standards breaches have since been publicly announced. A senior representative at a legitimate business rates firm alleged that HMRC benefits from allowing unscrupulous and poor-quality agencies to operate because they clog up the appeals system, and increase the proportion of cases it successfully defends. “They don’t care about
MP Connor Rand calling for ‘a debate on the business rate scams crisis’ in 2025. No such debate has been held cowboys, they make the numbers look better,” the representative claimed. HMRC’s refusal to share statistics on agent standards breaches leaves victims, perpetrators and the public in the dark about whether the body is doing enough to protect small businesses. Asked about allegations that its enforcement team was failing to tackle rogue agents, an HMRC
spokesperson said: “We appreciate that businesses just want to get their tax right and have peace of mind. We take all reports of agent breaches seriously and take firm action to tackle behaviour that doesn’t meet our standards. Where an agent refuses to comply, this can include blocking their access to valuation services or refusing to deal with them altogether.”
‘Data doesn’t show the full picture’
Independent stores account for 12% of all grocery spending, according to TWC, which claimed the figure should boost brand investment. The new TWC Channel Track research is well above the 1.4% indie grocery share shown by Worldpanel by Numerator. This is because TWC captures all spending, but Numerator only
tracks purchases that make it home, ignoring food and drink consumed before this point. TWC said it has heard of instances where understating of the market share led to suppliers reducing focus on independent shops, harming the amount of resource and investment allocated to the retail segment. TWC hopes its new
findings could prompt suppliers to reassess the size of the channel, resulting in a renewed spending by brands on supporting sales in independent stores. Jayne Webb, insights director at TWC Group, said Channel Track provides a “clear and consistent” view of the sector and the opportunities within it.
“One of the challenges with understanding the symbol and independent sector is that the full picture can sit across a number of different data sources,” she said. Tom Fender, development director at TWC Group, added: “If you underestimate the size of a channel, you risk underestimating the size of the opportunity.”
06/10/2026 10:31
CONGRATULATIONS TO THIS MONTH’S RN WEEKLY GIVEAWAY WINNERS! Darj Patel, Pasture Lane Stores Kashmira Naik, Marketplace News Kelly Allen, Seaborn Stores Jaswant Bhullar, Bhullar Convenience Store Want to see your name here next month? Enter your name into the draw, where each week you’ll stand a chance to receive £50 credit to your news bill or NewsTeam account*.
How to enter: scan the QR code or visit betterretailing.com/competitions to complete the online form, or email marketing@newtrade.co.uk SCAN ME
*T&Cs apply. Open to RN readers only and winners will be selected at random. £50 credit issued via wholesaler or NewsTeam rep. Full T&Cs available on the entry form. RN Weekly Giveaway Winner Ad September.indd 42
01/10/2026 17:20
8
PRODUCT NEWS
9 October 2026 RN
Four festive limited editions for Walkers and Doritos by Shyama Laxman
shyama.laxman@newtrade.co.uk
PepsiCo has unveiled its festive savoury snacking range featuring four limited-edition launches. They include Doritos Gingerbread, which returns for a second year after generating more than one million TikTok views last Christmas. It has an RRP of £2.50 for a 180g bag. Sensations Honey Glazed Roast Ham
(RRP £2.50 for a 150g bag) also returns, building on an 82% repurchase intent in 2025. Also making a comeback are Walkers Pigs in Blankets (5x25g RRP £2.30) and Roast Potatoes (5x25g RRP £2.30) multipacks, which last appeared in 2023 and 2021, respectively, both with new HFSS-compliant recipes for this year. The range will be supported by shopper marketing activity to drive
visibility throughout the festive period. While these launches are aimed at driving customer interest during the festive period, PepsiCo stressed the importance of core flavours, which accounted for more than 95% of total crisp sales in 2025 according to NIQ figures. The brand has also updated the packaging across its Walkers, Doritos and Wotsits Giants lines, featuring Christmas cues.
New Captain Morgan and Pepsi Max Cherry RTD hits shelves Captain Morgan and Pepsi Max have teamed up to launch the new Captain Morgan x Pepsi Max Cherry ready-todrink (RTD) cocktail. Building on a partnership that has already secured the number two spot in cola RTD serves in Britain. The drink is made using Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold, and is available in a plain
330ml can priced at £1.99 and a 250ml price-marked can at £2.25. It has an ABV of 5%. Nielsen research indicates cherry is the RTD category’s fastestgrowing flavour. “Eighty percent of those who have tried Captain Morgan x Pepsi Max are frequent Pepsi drinkers, so there’s alignment among fans of both,” said
Cristhel Molina, head of rums at Diageo. “We know people love the taste of cherry, so pairing Pepsi Max Cherry with Captain Morgan was an obvious choice.” The launch will be backed by a marketing campaign covering media, creator partnerships, PR and in-store activation across grocery and convenience.
SIVE
Wall’s High Protein Scotch Egg
Biona’s three new functional drinks
Wall’s has expanded its high-protein snacking range with the launch of Wall’s High Protein Scotch Egg. Launched in late September, the scotch egg weighs 113g and delivers 15g protein per serving. The launch comes as consumer demand for highprotein foods grows, and builds on the success of the Wall’s High Protein Sausage Roll, which saw 32% of sales come from shoppers new to the category at launch, according to NIQ.
Biona has launched a trio of functional drinks. The range comprises 95ml shots – Immune Shot and Fibre Shot – both retailing at £2.99 each, and a 1l pack of Coconut Water priced at £4.69. Functional drinks have been identified as a growth category, with research conducted by Savanta finding that 40% of consumers buy functional drinks several times a month.
RRP £1.50
Available now
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06/10/2026 12:30
Dracula-themed launches from Barratt
Avengers-themed crisps from Walkers
RRP £1.25 (Flumpkins), £2 (Scary Chews)
Runs until 31 December
Local Living Brownie Mix
Biotiful expands core Kefir range
Available now
RRP £3.50
Mountain Dew goes Pitch Black
Coca-Cola’s Holiday Creamy Vanilla
RRP £1.75
RRP £1.25 PMP (Zero Sugar 500ml), £1.50 PMP (Original 500ml)
Barratt Sweet Shop has launched a limited-edition Halloween range inspired by Dracula in partnership with Universal Products & Experiences. The range includes Flumps Flumpkins, which are pumpkin-shaped marshmallows flavoured with sour vanilla, and Wham Scary Chews, which come in three flavours: Wham Original, Wham Extreme and Wham Sour Apple.
Unitas has expanded its Local Living own-brand range with a new home baking line. The three-product range comprises Cupcake Kit, Brownie Mix and Batter Mix. All the products are price-marked and the supplier says this new range will deliver to up 45% profit on return for retailers. The Cupcake Kit is priced at £2.29, the Brownie Mix is £1.99 and the Batter Mix is 69p. Unitas has also launched a dedicated Own Brand Portal.
New Mountain Dew variant Pitch Black is now available via Booker, with more wholesalers to stock it from November. Carlsberg Britvic said the launch will help grow Mountain Dew’s £32.6m in UK retail sales by giving retailers a new single-serve (500ml) option. Shelf barkers, posters, window vinyls and other promotional tools for the launch are available from the supplier’s retail website.
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NEWS & ANALYSIS
9
RN 9 October 2026
Walkers Snacks has partnered with Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Doomsday, with an on-pack promotion and a new limitededition line. The limited-edition Wotsits Bag of Bones in Really Cheesy flavour has Doctor Doom-themed packaging. The promotion spans selected multipacks and sharing bags from Wotsits, Quavers, Monster Munch and Squares, with prizes including 2,440 pairs of Vue cinema tickets.
Biotiful has added to its core Kefir range with the launch of Greek Recipe Kefir. Greek Recipe Kefir Whole Fat 3% and 0% are available now in supermarkets nationwide, with wholesale and convenience availability from December. The launch follows new Biotiful research, which found that 78% of Brits consider gut health important and 74% believe small daily habits are more effective than major lifestyle changes.
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) has launched a limited-edition Coca-Cola Holiday Creamy Vanilla variety to drive festive sales. Available in both Original Taste and Zero Sugar versions, the launches come in packaging featuring vanillainspired colours. Both are available in 330ml cans, 8x330ml multipacks and 500ml bottles, with Original also coming in 175ml bottles and Zero Sugar in 2l bottles.
06/10/2026 12:31
10
PRICEWATCH
9 October 10 July 2026 RN
RUM
MAKE £85.28 MORE PROFIT PER YEAR: Check data from thousands of stores like yours for prices that can give you better profits than wholesalers’ RRPs HOW TO USE PRICEWATCH
The right selling price for each shop depends on customer needs, retail format and store location. Each week, Pricewatch uses exclusive till data from more than 11,000 independent shops like yours to reveal the average store’s sales revenue, volumes and profit when sold at different price points. By comparing the graphs against your store’s needs, you can find the price points that deliver better volume, revenue and cash profit, compared to wholesaler and supplier RRPs.
WRAY & NEPHEW OVERPROOF WHITE RUM 63% 5CL
£3.50 has best rate of sale and delivers best weekly revenue (£5.21)
Wholesaler RRP (£4.79) delivers £1.66 profit per week
£4.69 delivers best weekly profit (£2.02)
CAPTAIN MORGAN ORIGINAL SPICED GOLD RUM 35% 5CL
£2 has best rate of sale and delivers best weekly revenue (£1.84)
£3.49 delivers best weekly profit (78p)
Wholesaler RRP (£2.89) delivers 44p profit per week
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05/10/2026 11:05
Boost your margins with pricing data across 350 core convenience products on Pricewatch – the only price-comparison tool for independent retailers. Free one-year access for RN readers – visit hubs.ly/Q02P565P0 to redeem your offer or scan the QR code
KEY
Avg. sales value per store in £
Visit the website
betterretailing.com/ pricewatch
Avg. sales volume per store
Data supplied by Retail Spotlight incorporating In-Touch Group, based on sales from 11,000 independent convenience stores
Avg. profit per store in £
NEWS & ANALYSIS
11
RN 9 10October July 2026 2026
Highest point
BACARDI CARTA BLANCA 37.5% 1L
£24.49 has best rate of sale and delivers best weekly revenue (£12.95)
£29.99 delivers best weekly profit (£1.43)
Wholesaler RRP (£27.99) delivers £1.10 profit per week
THE KRAKEN BLACK SPICED RUM 40% 700ML
£27.99 has best rate of sale and delivers best weekly revenue (£5.91)
KNOW MORE, MAKE MORE How does your ranging compare? Gin is still my most popular spirit, but this summer, I sold more rum than I’d sold in a long time. Captain Morgan is my main seller across all sizes, but I also have 70cl and 1l bottles of Bacardi. Kraken’s original and Black Cherry varieties have also done well. I get those lines from Dhamecha, and I also pick up 35cl bottles of Bumbu rum from Costco.
p10-12 Pricewatch.indd 11
Wholesaler RRP (£31.49) delivers £1.33 profit per week
£32.99 delivers best weekly profit (£1.69)
Sarj Patel
Pasture Lane Stores, Sutton Bonington, Nottinghamshire
What guides your pricing? Captain Morgan and Bacardi are both pricemarked, so I try to pick them up when they’re on offer, as they’re the brands I know will sell through. Everything else I’m only restocking a bottle at a time. I sell Kraken at £30, as it’s a nice round figure and the margin is still above 25%, while Bumbu goes for £24.99 as it’s a premium line.
» 05/10/2026 11:06
NEWS & ANALYSIS
12
PRICEWATCH
9 October 10 July 2026 RN
MALIBU ORIGINAL 18% 5CL
Wholesaler RRP (£2.19) has best rate of sale, and delivers best weekly revenue (£1.13) and 40p profit per week
£2.99 delivers best weekly profit (54p)
DEAD MAN’S FINGERS SPICED RUM 37.5% 70CL
£20.99 delivers best weekly revenue (£4.23) and 73p profit per week Price with best rate of sale (£18.50) delivers 24p profit per week
Wholesaler RRP (£25.69) delivers 99p profit per week
£26.99 delivers best weekly profit (£1.10)
PROFIT-BOOSTING ROUND-UP
Wray & Nephew Overproof White Rum 63% 5cl: £4.69 delivers £18.72 more annual profit than the wholesaler’s suggested RRP of £4.79 Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold Rum 35% 5cl: £3.49 delivers £17.68 more annual profit than the wholesaler’s suggested RRP of £2.89 Bacardi Carta Blanca 37.5% 1l: £29.99 delivers £17.16 more annual profit than the wholesaler’s suggested RRP of £27.99 The Kraken Black Spiced Rum 40% 700ml: £32.99 delivers £18.72 more annual profit than the wholesaler’s suggested RRP of £31.49 Malibu Original 18% 5cl: £2.99 delivers £7.28 more annual profit than the wholesaler’s suggested RRP of £2.19 Dead Man’s Fingers Spiced Rum 37.5% 70cl: £26.99 delivers £5.72 more annual revenue than the wholesaler’s suggested RRP of £25.69
p10-12 Pricewatch.indd 12
06/10/2026 16:26
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DRIVE YOUR SALES THIS AUTUMN
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COMPREHENSIVE IN STORE SUPPORT***
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RN Full page ad.indd 1
01/10/2026 14:42
14
COLUMNIST
9 October 2026 RN
Jonathan Rons
Make gifts easy to find Easy-to-solve mistakes block shops from winning greater shopper spending on gifts. Here are the steps for fixing them
T
hink about the last time you needed a gift on the way to see someone. Perhaps it was a birthday you nearly forgot, a thank you for a neighbour or a bottle for the host of a dinner. You wanted to make a thoughtful choice, but you did not want to visit three shops. That is an opportunity convenience retailers should take seriously. We already serve customers who are short on time and looking for an immediate solution. Yet in many stores, the ingredients of a great gift are scattered around: cards near the till, chocolates in confectionery, flowers by the entrance and wine at the back. The range is there, but customers have to assemble the idea themselves. A good gifting offer needs to do two things at once. It should inspire shoppers with combinations they might not have considered, and make the whole mission simple to complete. Bringing relevant products together encourages shoppers to pause, browse and add to their basket. Think in terms of occasions rather than individual categories. A birthday could mean a card, chocolates, flowers and a bottle of fizz. A thank you might be a smaller bouquet, a gift card and a gift bag. A last-minute dinner invitation could call for wine, a card and something sweet. When those choices sit together, the shopper can see a complete gift, rather than a series of separate
p14 C Store Collective.indd 14
products. Presentation matters. A tired rack of cards next to an unrelated promotion will rarely say ‘special occasion’. Clear signage, attractive groupings and a fixture that feels deliberate can turn an everyday corner of the shop into somewhere worth exploring. Keep the offer easy to navigate, with visible prices and options at different spend levels. A customer should be able to find something thoughtful, whether they have £10 or £30 to spend. At C-Store Collective, we have been working with Kesseböhmer Retail Merchandising UK on a dedicated gifting display that brings cards, wrapping paper, gift bags, gift cards, flowers, chocolates and, where a store is licensed (and permitted to), wine into one destination. The aim is to use space effectively and help customers build a complete gift without hunting around. We would also recommend Riverside Greetings for the card solution, as they offer a guarantee on sales uplift. Your display should have capacity for a proper choice, from bouquets of different sizes to greetings cards and wrapping options, alongside chocolate and drinks. But no fixture can do the job on its own. The range still needs to reflect the people who use the store, the occasions they shop for and the space available in their store. A smaller store can apply the same principle with a compact display or a carefully planned end.
Help customers build a complete gift without hunting around
Start by looking at what customers already buy together. Are they buying flowers and then asking where the cards are? Do they grab a bottle of wine but leave without a gift bag? Listen to staff, too. They hear the questions that reveal where the shopping journey breaks down. Then, make the offer work week after week. Keep cards current, replenish popular flowers, check dates on chocolates and refresh the display for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Easter and Christmas. Local events and school thank-you moments can create opportunities as well. If one combination sells particularly well, give it more space and make it easier to spot. Finally, measure what happens. Look beyond sales from the fixture itself. Are more shoppers buying across two or three gifting categories? Has the average basket grown? Is the space earning more than it did before? Those answers will tell you whether the destination is doing its job. Convenience is about solving a need at the right moment. Gifting gives us a chance to do that with a little more imagination. Put the right products together, make the choice feel enjoyable, and customers may leave with a gift they are proud to give. Jonathan Rons, co-founder of C-Store Collective, has more than 25 years’ experience in helping independent retailers thrive
06/10/2026 10:55
15
STORE PROFILE
VIEWS
RN 9 October 2026
One Stop Gotherington Stores Shyama Laxman meets RN 30 Under 30 winner Arshpreet Sohal to understand where his focus lies for the future
O
ne doesn’t normally hear convenience retailers talk about not liking their jobs when they first get into the profession. However, Arshpreet Sohal, of One Stop Gotherington Stores in Cheltenham Spa, Gloucestershire, candidly admits he wasn’t a fan of the trade when he saw his parents clocking in long hours in their shop in Italy. The family moved to the UK in 2015, and Sohal eventually joined the business in favour of going to university. Now aged 21, the RN 30 Under Thirty winner has completed his first-ever shop refit and is hard at work trying to turn his store into a food-to-go destination. CHOOSING THE RIGHT SYMBOL PARTNER Before switching to One Stop, the store operated under the SimplyFresh fascia and was supplied
p17-19 Store Profile.indd 15
through Costcutter and Co-op Wholesale. “We’ve got three Co-ops down the road; it’s a disadvantage having Coop products at a higher retail price,” he says. “I was either going to the cash and carry four times a week or ordering from Costcutter, doing all the prices and promotion. So, while I was in the business, I wasn’t on top of it and I knew I had to pivot.” Over a period of nine months, Sohal met reps from different symbols before going ahead with One Stop in August 2025, followed by a refit in October. Other than reducing his trips to cash and carries, he says that One Stop’s value-led promotions and the flexibility to order a certain percentage of stock from elsewhere are some of the reasons he chose them over others. Though Sohal admits that being part of a symbol group can feel like a retailer has to give up some amount of con-
trol, he’s also quick to add that it’s not without benefits. “For someone that doubts if they’ve got enough range or the right range in store, One Stop’s planograms are perfect. I don’t have to trial stock, so I’m not losing out much on wastage when I start with a product,” he explains. While Sohal couldn’t share any figures to demonstrate how turnover has increased since switching to One Stop, he is confident that he has grown the most as an entrepreneur in “the past six-to-seven months”. FOOD TO GO IS THE WAY TO GO The next step after changing symbol partners was to find something that would differentiate the store from its competitors. While Sohal offers the traditional ready-made packaged food-to-go range, it is products like samosas that have
INFORMATION Location
Cheltenham Spa, Gloucestershire
Size
1,300sq ft
Staff members 3
Average basket £8.75-£9.05
Opening hours
Mon-Sat 7am-8pm, Sun 8am-7pm
Post Office
Mon-Fri 7am-5.30pm, Sun 7am-12pm
To see what other stores are doing, go to betterretailing.com/ store-profiles
»
01/10/2026 16:02
16
STORE PROFILE
helped give the store a point of difference. “Samosas are our bestsellers,” he says. “We do about 150-200 on a Friday. Sometimes, we also do them on Saturdays if demand is high as people travel in for them.” Priced between £1.50 and £1.90, samosas alone can generate up to £200 on a Friday. They were previously made in store, but Sohal has since outsourced their preparation to a third party, who delivers them frozen on a Thursday. His mother also makes homemade curries, which are sold in store on Fridays and occasionally Saturday. Priced at £6.50, and £5.50 for a vegetarian option, Sohal is now working on a £10 bundle deal, which would include an Indian beer or wine pairing. He cites fellow One Stop retailer Dee Sedani as an influence on venturing into food to go in the first place. Having invested around £9,000 in secondhand equipment such as a doughnut maker, milkshake machine and waffle machine, the mission now is to gradually build the category. Milkshakes, doughnuts and waffles are all made to order. Four sugar doughnuts are priced at £3 and four flavoured doughnuts retail at £4. Waffles are served with ice cream on the side and priced at £4 for one topping and £4.50 for two. Milkshakes are priced at £4-£4.50 a cup, and he cites it as the next bestselling line in store within the category. The machine is from a brand called Taylor, and Sohal sells around 15 cups during the week and up to 30 cups on a weekend, adding
p17-19 Store Profile.indd 16
around £600 to his tills. Sohal believes that keeping the offer fresh is important, whether that means introducing seasonal flavours such as Creme Egg around Easter, or exploring apple & cinnamon milkshakes in winter. He also sees opportunities in pairing products – for example, coffee and pastries or waffles and ice cream – to create a more complete offer. Currently, food to go makes up 10-15% of his business, with monthly takings of around £1,500. Sohal, however, adds that equipment breakdown or running out of raw materials during peak demand are common teething troubles associated with growing a new category in store. For smoother operations, he now has one dedicated staff member who does the necessary ‘prep’ first thing in the morning. “As soon as the store is open, the staff member checks all the machines are working, tests them out, gets enough mix for the machines and then some extra. There is a bit of waste at the beginning, but waste is your best friend. Data is your best friend. Use data to your advantage.” At the time of writing, Sohal had secured planning permission to remodel his storeroom and turn part of it into a kitchen, allowing him to expand his food-to-go menu further. One of the ideas he has trialled is serving School Cakes with custard. “The response has been good, but I need to find a way to make it more convenient,” he says. “That’s why I’m trying to split my store-
9 October 2026 RN
NOT LOSING SIGHT OF THE COMMUNITY At the time of writing, Sohal was in talks with the local school to distribute 60 vouchers among children in Reception and Year 1. Children can redeem the vouchers in his store for a free fruit and Fruit Shoot drink combo, and enter a prize draw. The promotion will run for two weeks, after which Sohal will select five names during a school assembly. Each winner will receive a £20 voucher for either Nando’s, Xbox, PlayStation, Nike or Adidas. Other ideas include funding coffee mornings in the village, as well as supporting the local girls’ sports team through sponsorships and supplies. “A business can’t always be run in a corporate way,” he says. “There must be a charitable side to it as well, where you give something back to the community.”
room in half. So, the back will be a kitchen and the front is going to be just storage.” Further plans include introducing Country Choice’s menu, as well as trying to replicate some of its range in store with locally sourced produce. “Start small and build it. But start with the customers that come in and ask them what they want to see,” says Sohal when asked what advice he’d give a retailer looking to start offering food to go. OPTIMISING WITH STORE ANGEL In August 2025, Sohal adopted the business operations platform Store Angel, paying an annual subscription fee of £700. The platform combines in-store tasks, staff rotas, visitor information, HR and legal records, temperature logs, training and user guides in one place. This enables Sohal to digitise paperbased processes and save time that can be spent improving other areas of the business. Daily tasks are divided into morning, afternoon and all-day processes, allowing Sohal to see what has been completed and identify outstanding tasks. He is also creating task-specific training videos so staff can access instructions without having to ask him. Store Angel also allows him to give staff training certificates once they have completed specific modules. He further adds that Store Angel has a comparison tool that checks his Snappy Shopper data against One Stop data. It highlights items that are missing from his delivery platform and allows him to review online and instore prices and make any relevant changes. l
01/10/2026 16:02
17 VIEWS
RN 9 October 2026
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01/10/2026 16:02
18
FED FOCUS Dharmendra ‘Danny’ Patel
Shawclough Stores, Rochdale, Yorkshire
A picture of Danny’s store from the archives
For more than 35 years, Danny and family have been evolving their retail offer, and now the Fed is supporting the shop team’s progress as well
W
e came from a retail background. My father was in retail from the age of 16, in Africa. And then he moved here and tried a few times to start his own retail business in the 1980s. I used to work in engineering, but that meant being away from home so much, even missing much of the first year of my oldest son’s life. Those are really precious moments and it’s one of the factors that made me want join my dad’s business close to home. We decided we wanted a big, family business and found our current shop back in 1991. There were happy years running it with my dad, then he retired and now I have many happy years running it with two of my sons, Nikul and Kieren. We’ve just celebrated 35 years and it spans three generations – I’m a grandad now, so technically there’s a fourth generation, too, although they’re only babies, so it’s
We were one of the first shops in the northwest to join Premier
early days yet. We started off with about 500sq ft of retail space, but now we’re at about 1,000 sq ft. We doubled the size by knocking down the store rooms, and our success has been from being quick to seize new opportunities. We’ve been with the National Lottery from day one, and in 1998, a post office down the road closed and we got the chance to take it on in our building. We had that for about 15 years, but we ended up getting rid of it as the post office’s performance was stagnating and we decided to part ways. You have to move with the times. We started as an independent before becoming one of the first shops in the north-west to join the Premier fascia. And then, in 2014, we joined Nisa. When we made that last change, we had a refurb and added more fresh and frozen food. In 2018, my older son got a bigger shop in Leeds. It was a rundown business when he acquired it. Now
x
Three steps. Same routine. Take payments as normal
Use your Lopay card at wholesalers and cash & carries
9 October 2026 RN In association with
it’s turning over five times more than when we took it on. It sells a lot of specialist fresh food, such as kumquats. My younger son looks after the Rochdale store now and I’ve taken a bit of a step back. I’ve been a member of of the Federation for coming up to 20 years, and it all started from a visit from a Fed RDM. Despite the many years of membership, it’s only in the past five years I’ve become really closely involved. A few mates told me to go to some meetings and it was a real eyeopener. I feel like it’s still like this – a lot of members paying up but not using what the Fed can do for them. You can get 30-40% off Ford vehicles – vans and cars. There’s also deals on credit card machines, energy and insurance, plus free legal help and loads more. There’s 150 benefits and they’re only getting better. Through the Fed I’ve learnt so much about the things that are coming up, such as new regulations and what’s going on with vapes. It’s great to be educated about what’s going on and if you’re aware in advance, you can look at all the options. SHOP-FLOOR WINS • We’ve been doing PerfectDraft mini-kegs in one of our shops as an official outlet. My youngest son in the Rochdale shop approached them – you sell a machine and kegs, and it’s like having a bar in your own home. • My eldest son in Leeds is doing a lot of American drinks, but he’s also leading in fresh and chilled. By working with local suppliers at Leeds market, he gets marinated meats in and is also selling a lot of Asian foods. In the old days, when I started, your range was a tin of beans, cat food, dog food, household goods and that was it. But now you have to think outside the box.
Potentially save £200+ on card processing fees JOIN THE FED
That spend offsets your card fees The Federation of Independent Retailers (the Fed) is the trading name of NFRN
p18 TheHorizontal.indd Fed page.indd 118 RN 1:4
06/10/2026 15/09/2026 16:32 14:06
INDUSTRY PROFILE RN 9 October 2026
Building a winning savoury snacks fixture
19
In partnership with
Impulse category management controller, PepsiCo
RN How significant is the savoury snacking opportunity for convenience retailers today? SF The category is in a strong position. Almost every consumer buys savoury snacks2, and 77% are purchasing them through convenience outlets², making the category worth £895m a year 3. What’s exciting is that there’s still plenty of untapped opportunity. We’ve identified that independent retailers could be missing out on an average of £17,800 in additional sales per store each year4, showing the importance of executing the category correctly. Our advice is simple: get the core range right before adding more. So, before introducing additional products, retailers should ensure they’re stocking the products shoppers know and trust, giving them the right space and making them easy to find.
Which products should retailers be leveraging to achieve this, and why? Our portfolio is built around iconic favourites like Walkers, Doritos, Quavers and Wotsits, which drive consistent demand, repeat purchase and impulse sales. Walkers alone is worth £126.17m in sales5, reinforcing its position as a key category driver. These brands create a powerful ‘beacon effect’ in store, drawing shoppers in while delivering reliable performance. Retailers can combine bestsell-
px Pepsico Industry Profile.indd 19
ing core lines with selected innovation to meet shopper expectations and drive category growth. That’s why we continue to invest in our core ranges, from the return of fan favourite Walkers Worcester Sauce in partnership with Lea & Perrins last year, to the wider Walkers relaunch earlier this year, helping retailers keep their offering fresh while maintaining familiarity. How important are PMPs within a successful savoury snacks range? PMPs play a vital role in convenience because they provide shoppers with visible reassurance on value. The format’s value share has risen to 70%3 in independent and symbol stores, making it an important part of any successful fixture. A good example is our latest Walkers 85p RRP PMP. With almost 750,000 shoppers at risk of exiting the category at the £1 RRP price threshold6, the format is simple and instantly recognisable,
reassuring customers they’re getting a fair deal. For retailers, PMPs such as this offer a simple way to reinforce value credentials while driving impulse purchases.
Get the core range right before adding more
If retailers could make one change tomorrow, what should it be? I’d start by reviewing the core range. Double facing makes bestsellers more visible, helping shoppers make purchasing decisions quickly and ensuring the main fixture turns stock into cash quickly. From there, look at where else snacks can appear around the store, particularly alongside drinks and food to go, making sure you are listening to your shoppers. Success doesn’t require a complete fixture overhaul. Often, the biggest gains come from making the category easier to shop and ensuring shoppers can quickly find the products they came in for. l
THREE TOP TIPS 1. Right space: Locate the main snacks fixture near the front of store to drive visibility and impulse purchases. 2. Right range: Focus on core favourites, including a strong PMP offering, such as the Walkers 85p RRP PMP range. This helps retain shoppers who may otherwise exit the category at higher price points. 3. Right layout: Block fixtures by shopper mission and flavour to help shoppers quickly find lines. Points of interruption, such as secondary displays near drinks, can also drive impulse purchases.
To download and read the full PepsiCo Max Your Snacks guide, sign up or log into Shopt now
1
Simon Foster
Pepsico Internal Research, Picture of Success, 2025, 2Kantar Worldpanel –GB Total Savoury – 52 w/e 30.11.25-| Total Market & Convenience Channel, 3NIQ 52 w/e 13.12.25, Independents & Symbols, 4NielsenIQ Retail Measurement | GB - PEPSICO - SAVOURY SNACKS - Impulse Independents + Symbols Cal Yr 2025 - w/e 27.12.25, 5NIQ Latest 52 Wks - w/e 04.04.26, Market: Total Impulse, 6Kantar Worldpanel data / Out of Home / CSN / Impulse / 52we/ 10.11.25
Simon Foster, impulse category management controller at PepsiCo, explains how focusing on a core savoury snacking range can help retailers maximise category performance and drive a 16% sales uplift1
06/10/2026 16:31
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16/02/2026 10:25
Late deliveries cost sales
We’ve had another weekend of late newspaper deliveries, but it’s nothing new. In early September, our delivery arrived more than an hour late, with numerous inserts to complete. The Guardian and Times had four inserts each, which we hadn’t been informed of. Alongside the Mirror and Express TV guides, that meant 14 inserts that Saturday. We’re a large home news delivery store supplying five other retailers. The delays meant our deliveries went out 90 minutes late, costing us 22 newspaper sales, worth nearly £100. Smiths News has told me the delays are due to more publishers sharing lorries, increasing unloading and preparation times. Publishers don’t seem to recognise the pressure this puts on retailers. We’re working twice as hard and losing sales. If they’re going to include supplements, they should send them midweek so we
can prepare for Saturday. They should remember we’re the ones generating their sales. Scott Saunders
Newsklip, Fakenham, Norfolk
A Smiths News spokesperson responded: “Following a complaint from retailer Scott Saunders about a late delivery on Sunday 27 September 2026, we looked into what happened. Our investigation found that the extra inserts for the weekend of 26 and 27 September had been communicated in advance through the weekly Your Round Up retailer bulletin. “On Sunday 27 September, Scott’s delivery arrived later than the agreed required delivery time (RDT) due to delays from the publisher, which affected delivery times that morning. “We spoke with Scott to discuss the issue and understand his concerns. During the conversation, we found that he was expecting a consistent 6am delivery throughout the week and wasn’t aware that weekend delivery targets differed from weekday delivery times. “To help prevent similar concerns in the future, we’ve updated the weekend RDTs
SCOTLAND MUST TAKE ACTION NOW
Pete Cheema, chief executive, SGF Scotland has reached a tipping point on illicit trade. The time for talking is over, and we need decisive action now. Illegal tobacco and vapes are no longer a marginal problem confined to a handful of rogue operators. They are sold openly in communities, increasingly normalised and pose a serious threat to legitimate retailers. This is about far more than unfair competition. Illicit trade threat-
p21 Your Views.indd 21
ens the viability of local shops, the jobs they support and the essential services they provide. Responsible retailers pay taxes and follow the law, yet are being undercut by criminals. The illicit market is estimated to cost legitimate businesses several billions of pounds. We are therefore calling for urgent, coordinated action from ministers. Scotland needs a dedicated illicit trade
and the Newmarket Final Mile team will work to achieve these earlier weekend delivery times.”
Fines won’t stop rogue traders
Get in touch
letters@newtrade.co.uk 020 7689 3357
VIEWS
YOUR VIEWS
21
RN 9 October 2026
VIEW FROM THE COUNTER with Vidur Pandya
Having worked in retail for 40 years, I’ve never seen illicit trading as bad as it is now. The punishment doesn’t fit the crime. Offenders can receive fines of a few hundred pounds and be trading again within days. We need a licensing system covering alcohol, cigarettes and vapes, with licences attached to both the owner and premises. Retailers caught selling illicit products should lose their licence for 10 years, with the premises also prohibited from selling these products. That would prevent offenders simply changing ownership and applying for a new licence. Such a ban would be a serious deterrent. I’m sick of seeing rogue traders get away with it. Michael Smiley Haith
A new excise duty on vaping products came into force on 1 October, but I was well prepared for its introduction. Before the duty took effect, I bought two weeks’ worth of our fastest-selling products, while keeping prices as low as possible. My plan is to put new stock on a second bay, keeping older, non-duty stock on our existing vape gantry. Staff have been proactive in explaining why some products are more expensive than others, and customers have been receptive to this approach. Our suppliers have also been helpful. One of our wholesalers, Vape Supplier Limited, provided some good guidance, while my local rep has kept me updated. Meanwhile, the weather is getting colder, which always brings a boost in sales. Customers are less likely to travel to supermarkets in the next town, preferring to stay comfortable and shop locally. WHAT I’VE BEEN UP TO THIS WEEK We’ve had our Halloween and Christmas stock delivered, so we’ve been getting everything out. Halloween is growing each year, and we’ve started decorating the store with cobwebs and skeletons to make it feel spooky. This year, I’ve given staff more ownership, letting them decide how they want to decorate the shop. Some customers comment that Christmas comes earlier every year, but that doesn’t stop them buying the products.
Smileys One Stop Shop, Blackpool
taskforce bringing together government, Trading Standards, HMRC, police, retailers and others to improve coordination, intelligence sharing and enforcement. Criminal operators do not respect local authority boundaries, so the response cannot remain fragmented between agencies and regions. Every community must receive the same level of protection and then legitimate businesses can have confidence that the rules are being applied properly. Tougher penalties are essential. Those deliberately profiting from illegal trade should face meaningful consequences, including immediate closure orders, stronger custodial sentences where appropriate and lasting
bans from trading. If the rewards continue to outweigh the risks, criminals will simply keep coming. This requires properly resourced Trading Standards services. Ministers must ensure local authorities have the capacity and expertise to tackle an increasingly organised and sophisticated illicit market. Convenience retailers should not be expected to compete with criminals operating with impunity. The Scottish government has heard our concerns, and this is welcome, but now it must act. As the illicit market grows, so must the scale of the response – with coordinated action and meaningful consequences for those who profit from illegal trade.
YOUR SAY THIS WEEK’S QUESTION Are you aware of the latest store waste management requirements?
Yes 64%
No 36%
NEXT WEEK’S QUESTION Is shoplifting lower than this time last year? Poll by Better Retailing Club Rewards
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9 October 2026 RN
How to become a gifting destination
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Charles Whitting explores the ways retailers can grow their gifting offer from impulsive options to a dedicated, destination range
egardless of the size of shop, it’s possible for retailers to incorporate a gifting option. Birthdays and anniversaries happen all the time, which means there are always opportunities to drive sales throughout the year, although there are certainly seasonal peaks to consider when it’s worth expanding what’s on offer. “It’s not like these are things that are going to go out of date,” says Mike Nijjer, from Costcutter Bull Street in Birmingham. “You’re never going to lose out on it.” For retailers starting out, a small range of quick-and-easy options can
These are not things that will go out of date
help customers looking for an emergency or last-minute gift. While some of the retailers who spoke to RN have cornered their local market – as dedicated gift and card shops closed or as they found specific points of difference – there are still opportunities to create a small offer to cater for specific needs. “It’s amazing the amount of balloons and gifts we sell between 6am and 8am,” says Judith Mercer, from Hamilton News in Belfast. “It’s people on their way into work suddenly remembering, ‘It’s Joe’s birthday! Better get him something.’ There might be a fabulous gift shop in
your area, but you’ll be open earlier and shutting later than them, so make use of that.” Christmas is the obvious time to build up a gifting range, but the year is littered with gifting occasions, from Easter and Halloween to Valentine’s, Mother’s and Father’s Day, to end-of-term gifts for teachers. So, even if a gifting range doesn’t bring about a sale immediately, its presence can linger in people’s minds, so when the time comes when they need an emergency gift, it is to your shop that they know to go.
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TOYS AND CHILDREN’S GIFTS Children’s gifts are a good place for retailers to start, as a range can include small, impulsive items that sell for pocket money. Nijjer has an extensive range of teddy bears and children’s toys in a dedicated section of his shop, largely because there is a children’s hospital very close by. He sources his gifts from national wholesalers such as B&J Toys, and local Birmingham firms such as NT International Wholesale and Awan. “We sell about £2,000-£3,000 a week with the toys, and then we’ve got smaller things such as keyrings,” he says. “The margins are 40% or more. Because we sell so much, our suppliers have started giving us a preferential rate.” He ensures that the range keeps changing to keep customers interested, but also to see what might sell better, as he seeks to keep up with trends in the wider market. Squishie toys have been very popular for him, as have Beanie Babies. “The Beanie Babies are very good sellers,” he says. “We sell between £1,000 and £1,200 every week from Ty’s collection.” A major viral trend within gifting this year, Squishies saw Nishi Patel, from Londis Bexley Park in
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Dartford, Kent, selling 600 units in one week at its height, bringing in £3,600 with 40-50% margins, with some of them impulse purchases, but other, larger ones bought as birthday gifts. “You need to jump on those bandwagons, whether it’s Prime, American chocolate or these things,” he says. “It’s all part of a convenience offer now. “We have all these products at the front of the store. Kids need to see that and have their parents holding them back. Then it’s a knock-on effect as they tell their friends at school and they tell their parents.” Mercer has a range of Squishies, with some selling for £14, as parents have started stocking up on Christmas presents. She sources them from a reputable supplier, and stresses the importance of working with trusted wholesalers and suppliers to ensure what you’re stocking is compliant. Despite this, she still took the Squishies off her shelves for a while when the scandal hit. In addition to trending lines, Mercer also has a range of calendars, jigsaw puzzles and books that she sources from a range of suppliers, including Lomond Books and a local Belfast charity, freshening what’s on the shelves as seasonally appropriate. “It’s a no-brainer for people on their way to a kid’s birthday party,” she says. “You just buy them a little book, a toy and card. You don’t have to go all the way to Waterstones. “We use B&J Toys, OPC, Words n Wishes, Card Connection, Jacksons, Budget, Lomond and Widdop & Co. Widdop isn’t sale or return and has a minimum spend of £500, but it’s good. I’d recommend any retailer looking to get into gifts to start with sale or return.” Meanwhile, Stilyana Trifonova, from Frome Valley Local Store in Bristol, has introduced a children’s gift, designed to help people with anxiety. “It’s a toy that does breathing exercises,” she says. “I sold four in the past week for £30, bringing in £120. I put them in a see-through plastic gift box with some flowers. I get my ideas from Pinterest, but I also use my own imagination to create things. You can put anything in the see-through boxes – we’ve even had customers bringing in their own toys and buying the boxes.” GIFTS FOR ADULTS For retailers not looking to carve out a specific section of their store for gifts, luxury additions to existing
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ranges can cover a range of grownup gifts. From chocolate boxes to wine and whiskies, a few premium options can be promoted as gifts and can sell well. “Our alcohol does well,” says Hanish Singh, from Londis Ash Road in Woking, Surrey. “We get some that come in a box with an accompanying glass. It’s mostly spirits and it brings in £200-£300 during Christmas. Nishi Patel has found that a few premium bottles of whisky and cognac don’t just add glamour to his spirits range, they take up space without him having to invest in entire cases. And every time there’s a sale, it’s high margin and high value. “We’ve found that cognacs have been really popular around Father’s Day,” he says. “We add in some XO cognacs that sell for £199-£250 and people know what it is. They have lovely bottles and boxes that look so much better than more mainstream options.” He also stocks premium whiskies and recalls selling three bottles of Johnnie Walker Blue Label to a woman looking for Father’s Day gifts for her husband, father and father-in-law.
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We sold three bottles of whiskey worth £200 each
9 October 2026 RN
“Those three bottles were £200 each, so that single sale brought us £600,” he recalls. “Would you rather have thousands of pounds of dead stock in the back office or three bottles worth £600? We also get special bottles of Jack Daniel’s in, like Triple Mash, which sell for £50-£60. We sell cases of that over the course of a year.” Singh also has a small range of aftershave that he stocks yearround, but which he then increases in the lead-up to Christmas. “They cost us around £3 and we sell them for £8,” he says. “We’re bringing in £500 of pure profit over the Christmas period from them.” Another easy gift option you can introduce is gift cards, whether it’s ones linked to your store – which encourage customers to come back to you at a later date – or simpler options that link to a host of activities and websites. John Vine, from Vine & Co in Church Stretton, Shropshire, sells £10,000-worth of gift cards for his store every year, emblazoned with his branding. In contrast, Kaual Patel, from Nisa Local Torridon in Hither Green, London, put a stand out selling more generic gift cards. “We churn through them like
there’s no tomorrow,” he says. “They are 100% tax-deductible for any limited company for gifting, so they’re very popular. And you know they won’t go to waste – there are so many multipurpose ones out there, whether it’s gaming or food.” ADDING TO THE BASKET For every gift that you might sell, there are several further ways you can add to the overall basket spend. Having a range of cards adjacent to gifting options is a huge open goal, catering for year-round and specific seasonal occasions. Looking beyond that, however, you can add further to baskets with wrapping paper and tape, as well as gift bags. “We have a special section with our gifts – baby things, teddies, picture frames, candles, mugs and glasses – with cards, wrapping paper, gift bags and chocolates,” says Mercer. “The bags sell for £1.89-£2.29 and they’re so handy to just throw a present into along with a card.” Mercer supports this gifting range still further with partyware lines such as balloons, candles, party poppers and sparklers. During peak seasons, she will sell 700 packets of sparklers in a month at 79p, bringing in around £138.25 a week.
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RETAILER VIEWPOINT Gift bags are an easy way to add something special to an impulsive and last-minute purchase made without time to wrap. Selling them from £1.49-£3 depending on the size, Nishi Patel gets 50% margins on them and says the end of the school term sees spikes in sales as parents buy presents for teachers. PERSONALISING GIFTS Maintaining a range that covers as many bases as possible without taking up too much space can be a challenge, but finding ways to add that added personal touch can result in your store being remembered as the place to go for a gift rather than as an emergency purchase. Mercer, for example, has expanded her card range to include ones aimed at specific family members and for specific birthday milestones. She has done the same with mugs and glasses. “We have cards that say ‘To my sister on her 40th birthday’,” she says. “You can get stickers to put on cards instead, but with our way people feel they’re getting something special, and at a more affordable price than they’d get at Hallmark.” Mercer’s cards are priced between £1.69 and £3.99, and since introduc-
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It’s about repurposing what you’ve got for another season or occasion
ing the more personalised range, she is taking £2,500 a week from cards and gifts. She also notes that while a glass saying ‘To Dad’ will sell well in the build-up to Father’s Day, there is no need to remove it afterwards, because fathers will continue to have birthdays throughout the rest of the year. “It’s about repurposing what you’ve got to create another season and another occasion,” she says. “When you’ve sold the gifts for teachers at the end of term, you can keep the remaining chocolates and little gifts for other occasions. The only thing we can’t really transfer are Halloween gifts.” Trifonova has taken personalisation a step further, with a printing press above her shop that enables her to create a bespoke mug or Tshirt for customers within 10 minutes of them ordering. The mugs cost £4.99 and the T-shirts cost £9.99, and bring in 70% margins. “They can email a picture to us and then come to pick it up the same day or the following day,” she says. “At the moment, we’re selling about two-to-three mugs a week. It can be any occasion – birthdays, anniversaries, it doesn’t matter – although birthdays are the most popular.” l
Kaual Patel Nisa Torridon, Hither Green, London
We have a full range of Pokémon toys, including the 30th anniversary stuff. I got my hands on everything I could. There are some which sell for £4.30 and others that sell for £70. The next wave has lines that sell for £160 each. Sometimes, I invest in certain items so we can secure other ones. We’ve got an array of board games from the same supplier. And I think that by buying so many boardgames, it helped me to get the Pokémon as well. We have Pokémon Monopoly and Marvel-themed games that we sell for £25-£35. They’re non-perishable, so as long as you’re dusting them off every so often, they’ll sell – plus they’re high-margin products. My absolute minimum on these lines would be 35%. One sale brings £10 in pure profit – that’s 25-30 Mars bars you’d have to sell to get that.
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COCKTAILS AT HOME
What’s trending in cocktails at home? Cocktails at home are a category that can make your store a destination, but where are the opportunities? Tamara Birch finds out
C
ocktail-flavoured, ready-todrink (RTD) options are becoming a higher priority for shoppers, which is helping retailers attract younger shoppers into their stores. Avtar Sidhu, of St John’s Budgens in Kenilworth, Warwickshire, says BuzzBallz is a key brand to stock, with the range mostly bought by 18-to-24-year-olds. “Espresso Martini, Strawberry ’Rita and Berry Cherry Limeade are among our top flavours,” he says. “We run them – and the rest of our RTD range – on a multibuy promotion of three for £12.” Sidhu adds that the multibuy has helped sales, and he sells around
BuzzBallz are all over social media right now
200 BuzzBallz per week, bringing in as much as £800 even if all are bought on promotion. “Younger customers have more disposable income, but they’re also more adventurous and willing to try new products,” he says. Sidhu isn’t the only retailer seeing success with BuzzBallz. Bobby Singh, of BB Nevison Stores & Post Office in Pontefract, West Yorkshire, sells around seven cases of Strawberry ’Rita, Berry Cherry Limeade and Lime ’Rita per week. At £3.99 each, and 12 bottles per case, this is bringing in an additional £335.61 per week, on average. The reason behind the product’s success is due to social media.
“BuzzBallz are all over social media right now, and customers are actively looking for them,” he says. “But it’s also how the bottles are presented to the consumer. They are striking, unique, stand out and great for being on the go.” While BuzzBallz are trending right now, Sidhu says that there’s an opportunity for other brands, as well as the opportunity for retailers to encourage older customers to purchase from the category. “We stock other brands, too, but one that’s growing is Moth,” he says. “It’s a more premium option, and we’ve found it has a slightly higher age group buying it because of its higher ABV.” Sidhu stocks four flavours that are also on the same three-for-£12 multibuy, but he says customers tend to be brand loyal rather than taking advantage of the mix and match. He adds that among the flavours he stocks, he sells around 10 cases of all four flavours combined per week. With 12 cans in a case, this brings in around £480 per week minimum, if all were sold on promotion. Supplier activations and branded displays have helped Singh to maximise sales of RTD cocktails. In the summer, he sourced Au Vodka-branded gold ice buckets from Booker Wholesale, which held
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RTD COCKTAILS AT HOME 1. Vogo RTD cocktails enter the wholesale channel The pre-mixed vodka shots, a new concept in RTD cocktails, are now available via Filshill Wholesale Scotland, with more listings to follow. The cocktails come in four flavours: Strawberry Splash, Tropical Deluxe, Raspberry Blast and Citrus Zang, with an ABV of 15% and a £1.85 RRP. 2. Curious Drinker RTD canned cocktails The Curious Drinker RTD canned cocktail flavours include Raspberry & Lime Mojito, Passionfruit & Vanilla Martini and Mango & Pineapple Margarita. Alcohol-free options have a £2.40 RRP, while 8% ABV cans have a £3.40 RRP.
SUPPLIER ADVICE Chris Shead, off-trade channel director at Pernod Ricard UK, offers advice on how to grow sales of cocktail ingredients 1. Make it easy – Bundle spirits with mixers, garnishes and recipe cards. This shows shoppers exactly what they need in one place, rather than asking them to piece a cocktail together themselves. 2. Think seasonally – Suggesting or merchandising seasonal twists on staple serves – for example, hot or mulled serves at Christmas – helps to keep shoppers engaged and motivates them to try something new. 3. Consider formats – Smaller formats, such as 35cl and 20cl bottles, make cocktail-making more accessible and less of a financial commitment for consumers. These formats are growing in popularity, and retailers should ensure a range of smaller pack sizes sits alongside the full-size bottles in store.
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around eight cans. “Customers could take them home with purchase, and they loved it,” he says. “Sales during this period increased by 10%, on average.” Sidhu, however, takes a different approach to boosting RTD sales. “The main thing for us is I’ve created a three-door chiller specific to RTDs. We’ve made it a destination, and the multibuy means that customers can try different options,” he says. MADE-FROM-SCRATCH COCKTAILS Chris Shead, off-trade channel director at Pernod Ricard UK, says that, in contrast to RTDs, madefrom-scratch cocktails are for when the time and occasion call for more effort, such as hosting friends and family, celebrating a milestone or a date night in. “It’s a slower and more considered style of drinking, and is often more sociable, as making the drink becomes part of the evening. For retailers, this is where theatre comes in – a display that shows shoppers exactly what they can make and how it will outperform a spirit bottle sat on its own,” he says. This is backed by Sidhu, who says that he’ll have all the associated
ingredients in the spirits aisle, so customers can buy what’s needed. “We have lemons and limes in our spirit bays, and we have glassware down there, too,” he says. Glassware is a strong way to encourage purchase, and both Sidhu and Singh say that gifts with purchase play a role in helping to sell cocktail ingredients. In the past, Sidhu has also used recipe cards, but they didn’t always work year-round. Instead, he gets them out every Christmas. “We offer quite high-end gins, and customers are looking for inspiration, which is where the recipe cards help,” he says. “We’ll also add shelf barkers to promote cocktailmaking and which types they can make, too.” Shead echoes this approach and says that with glassware, a martini, spritz or highball glass can help shoppers create a strong at-home bar set-up, giving your customers’ cocktails a finish that matches the effort of making them. “Also, consider mixers and syrups beyond the more obvious tonics or sodas – for example, flavoured tonics, sugar syrups or ginger beer,” he says. “These help shoppers to create more variety and be more creative from the same base spirits.” l
05/10/2026 11:22
BUSINESS INSURANCE
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Ensuring your store is insured properly Shyama Laxman speaks to retailers and an insurance expert to understand how to optimally insure a convenience store
“B
efore, we used to use a broker locally, and they just sorted it out for us. To be honest, we just went with whoever was the cheapest,” says Sid Ali, of Morrisons Daily Mintlaw in Aberdeenshire. This is until he switched to Five Rivers Insurance, which recommended that Ali separate his property insurance from his business insurance and go for a tailored policy for each store. He pays around £6,000 for buildings and contents insurance across his five stores, and his broker, Harpinder Dhaliwal, has been able to negotiate
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a better deal and bring it down by £600-£700 this year.
Declare the overall value of goods in your store
WHAT NEEDS COVERING? Retailers spend a lot on contents, fixtures and fittings, so these need to be correctly valued and insured. “A lot of people think ‘well, it’s not going to get stolen’, but if a fire happens, you want to make sure that something you spent so much money on is covered as well,” says Dhaliwal. Insuring stock entails breaking it down into categories – tobacco, vapes, alcohol and ambient products, for example.
“You declare the overall value of goods in your store. Let’s say £50,000, and out of that what percentage or value is alcohol, tobacco, vapes, freezer and chiller goods. The more details you give, the more likely you are to be covered for a lot of things,” says Vidur Pandya, of Kislingbury Village Store & Post Office in Northamptonshire. The biggest cover in convenience stores is for high-risk items such as tobacco and spirts. In fact, Dhaliwal puts tobacco products above alcohol when it comes to theft. She, therefore, advises retailers to do a full stock-take to understand how
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As value of stock might go up during busy periods such as the summer or Christmas, it’s advisable to let your broker know so you have adequate cover.
much stock they have on site, as well as factor in the value of future purchases. She further adds that retailers also underestimate the possibility of fridges and freezers breaking down, and don’t get cover for “deterioration of stock”. “Nowadays, when the weather changes so dramatically, it does have an impact on the refrigeration equipment. Within an hour or two of your equipment not working, that stock is completely gone. So, unless you’ve got a back-up fridge or freezer, you’ve lost thousands of pounds worth of stock.”
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It covers the driver and the car
OTHER ENDORSEMENTS TO CONSIDER Pandya says about two years ago, he also incorporated an ‘Employee Dishonesty’ clause into his policy. As per information on Sutcliffe & Co’s website, this clause covers five scenarios: theft of cash from tills or bank accounts; fraudulent transfers of company funds; forging cheques or payment instructions; theft of stock, materials or equipment; and embezzlement and other forms of financial fraud. Other standard clauses include employers’ liability to cover the staff in case of accidents, public liability to cover customers visiting the premises, and product liability in case a product is not fit for purpose and a customer ends up hospitalised and makes a claim, he explains. Pandya’s insurance broker is The Retail Mutual, recommended by the Fed. “I wanted something that would make it easier to renew and for them to manage. When you email them, they respond within
less than 24 hours. They’re very quick at updating any changes that need to happen. When it comes to renewal, they’ll send you the quotation automatically. They were a decent price, and through the Fed, I got a 10% discount on the premium.” Business interruption in the event of a fire or flood is also an important element to get insured for. “You may not get your entire turnover, but you will get the profit you need to operate your business, such as wages, bills and overheads,” says Priyesh Vekaria, of One Stop Carlton Convenience in Salford, Manchester – and a Five Rivers Insurance customer as well. There’s also tenant’s improvement cover, which kicks in if you are a tenant in the building but have paid to add value to the property. “If a fire or flood happened, it’s not just the landlord that would get paid out, you’d get paid out as well. For example, if you’ve had a refit in the shop, it’s getting covered for that,” says Dhaliwal. Vekaria says retailers should also get a ‘Loss of Licence’ cover added to their policy. “Sometimes shown as a Loss of Licence Extension or Endorsement under Business Interruption,” he
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says. “It can cover financial loss following the forfeiture, suspension, withdrawal or non-renewal of a premises licence.” INSURING A DELIVERY SERVICE Dev Patel, of MJ’s Premier in Royton, Greater Manchester, offers home delivery through Snappy Shopper and has insurance arranged for his delivery vehicles through a broker called Fuzzy Insurance. “It covers the driver and the car, but not the stock. It’s much cheaper just doing it as one fleet,” says Patel, who has four cars, including his own car that he uses for deliveries. The vehicles are covered for accident, fire and theft. He admits the first year was expensive, at around £13,000, but that has now come down to £6,500 as they haven’t had a claim and have established business history and credibility. Some shop owners recommended hiring drivers who are 25 years or older as that brings the premium down. There are two avenues that retailers can explore when kickstarting the insurance process, says Patel. “We went for one where the employee must be employed by the business for a minimum of 20 hours,” he says. “You can also go down another route of submitting each driver’s licence. Then they’ll do their own checks to see if the driver is credible. But you’re at risk of that insurance being denied, so you just
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You want to make sure the drivers have a clean licence
want to make sure the drivers have a clean licence as well.” KEEPING ON TOP OF YOUR COVER “It’s a misconception to say just because you have more stock on your site, you will pay more insurance. If you have higher security implementation, it might be that your store has a lower premium than the store around the corner, which only has half your stock, but no security measures in place,” says Vekaria. The main thing insurers look for is a good intruder alarm, such as a police response alarm, says Dhaliwal. Additionally, having bollards or shutters to secure your ATM and a shutter lock for your cigarette gantry are other ways to fortify your store. Furthermore, doing cash lifts midway through the day, so there’s no cash left on the premises, or keeping excess tobacco stock in a locked unit and unexposed, can help lower risk levels, potentially bringing down premiums. “Some insurers would want cash to be stored in a safety deposit box in the store. Others are happy for the cash to be in a cash tray and stored in the safe within an ATM. Our policy is no cash left on site overnight,” says Vekaria. He and his team use different methods to avoid
routines and patterns being recognised when removing cash from the store multiple times during the day. Policy conditions for cash on premises can vary. “During working hours, the limits will be higher because the money is safer with staff or owners being on the premises. Outside of working hours, the limits tend to be less, even if you’ve got it in a locked safe. So, make sure you do regular cash lifts so you’re within the limits,” says Dhaliwal. DO NOT FORGET HOUSEKEEPING “All the staff are trained on trips, slips and falls, and how to keep the place clean and tidy. We also have someone coming in every year to do health, fire, electrical testing and disability risk assessments. You must always have these records to show that you’re carrying out all the basic checks. Then it’s very hard for the insurance company to void your claim,” says Ali, adding he pays a third-party company around £500 per store to carry out the relevant checks every year. Furthermore, if any material conditions in the current policy have changed that affect the risk, then you must inform your insurer. For example, if the police response
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BUSINESS INSURANCE EXPERT VIEWPOINT Harpinder Dhaliwal
Owner, Five Rivers Insurance
The most important thing when you’re doing buildings cover is getting the reinstatement value correct. If the owner has got a loan on the building, then normally the bank will tell you what they want the reinstatement value to be. If the building is unencumbered, then they would have to come up with a guesstimate as to what they anticipate the reinstatement value to be. I think a lot of people get the reinstatement value wrong because they assume it means what their building is worth. Market value and reinstatement value are completely different things. If the building was to get knocked down or destroyed in a fire, the insurers want to know if they could recover that cost if the building had to be rebuilt from scratch. So, essentially what they’re asking you is how much would it cost for you to hire somebody to build it back up into a shell. alarm gets removed – which can happen in instances of three accidental callouts – or if a post office has been added to what was previously just a convenience store, your insurer must be notified. Dhaliwal and Ali also emphasise the importance of being open about any claims in the past five years as insurers have their own database to check up on things like that. “They also want to know if the director has had any administrations, liquidations, receiverships or bankruptcies. So, when it comes to a claim, if you’ve not made them aware, that will become an issue in the claims process,” says Dhaliwal. TO CLAIM OR NOT TO CLAIM Patel says retailers must weigh up whether a claim is going to increase their future premium by a lot more than what they hope to recover. He says he’s only claimed once in the past five years after a break-in resulted in the theft of £15,000-worth of cigarettes. At the time, he was
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When the insurers come to pay out, they’ll look for invoices
asked for a list of the items being claimed for, confirmation from the alarm company that the alarm had been activated, evidence that the alarm system had been inspected, a copy of the alarm maintenance agreement, CCTV footage, the crime reference number, photographs and confirmation of payment schedule with the insurance company. “We claimed for about £12,000. The process was quite long and getting the payout was difficult,” says Patel. “I wouldn’t claim for petty theft. I would report the issue to the police, get a crime reference number and manage it with the police myself instead of getting insurance involved.” Dhaliwal agrees with this approach and emphasises the importance of having up-to-date electrical certifications as that’s
one the first things insurers ask for when you make a claim. “When the insurers come to pay out, they’ll look for invoices,” she says. “They want to know that you’ve got the purchases that you’re saying you’ve got in store. So, when it comes to a claim, they’ll look to back that up. For example, if you said you’ve got £15,000-worth of cigarettes, they’ll probably look at the past three months’ worth of invoices to make sure you have been regularly purchasing that amount or equivalent.” Payouts can be affected if you are under or over insured, so try to be as aligned as possible to the original value. Dhaliwal further elaborates that family businesses with multiple shops tend to do purchases under one limited company. “Ideally keep those purchases as separate as you can. So, when it comes to a claim, you’re easily able to show the insurers your purchases and it’s backed up by how much you said is the value of the stock,” she says. For claiming against theft of cash, insurers will look for when you last banked your cash, followed by your EPoS data to see how much you took between your last banking period and when the theft happened. For cash thefts while in transit, they will also ask for CCTV footage of the area where the incident occurred as well as CCTV evidence of you leaving your store with the cash. l
05/10/2026 16:55
SELL MORE MAGAZINES
TURNING AI INTO MAG SALES
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STORE IMPROVEMENTS
33
RN 9 October 2026
For help with your magazine range, contact richard@luciddirect.co.uk
Publisher Anthem has released the latest in a series of Tech Guides explaining how consumers can benefit from AI. Sally Fitzgerald explains why it should drive extra sales in stores
DEMYSTIFYING AI
BOOST THE SERIES
Artificial intelligence (AI) has been the subject on everyone’s lips for a few years, and Anthem has been demystifying the myths about AI since 2024, when it published its first tech guide explaining chatbot ChatGPT. Since then, it has gone on to cover a wider range of topics. “No one else was doing a dedicated magazine about how to use AI in order to break down that fear, so we spotted an opportunity for us to do so,” says Anthem’s Sally Fitzgerald. “We’re working with a couple of amazing editors who are experts in this area, although it’s all so fast paced that there’s never a shortage of new material to talk about.”
Fitzgerald believes that retailers can give the titles a further boost. “These are premium products with clear benefits and educational opportunities,” she says. “It’s in the interest of retailers to place them in high-traffic areas where they can be easily spotted. These can be an impulse purchase, so any way of drawing attention to these types of bookazines is going to be valuable for the retailer because chances are that someone picking up the beginner’s guide will then come back another month for the next step up the learning ladder, so we want to encourage repeat purchase, which benefits everyone.”
TECH GUIDES A SUCCESS Fitzgerald says that for anyone who wants to find out about tech, print magazines work best because of the trust in the medium and its ease of use when a person is trying to complete fiddly tasks on their screens. “The Tech Guides have gone down really well, particularly with the older audience, which is why we’ve produced a ChatGPT For Seniors, too,” she says. “With our readership, people prefer to learn about what they need to do from the mag pages and then try it out – which is why we include so many step-by-steps. That’s much harder to do when you’re constantly having to toggle between tabs to work out what to do next, particularly if you’re doing it on your phone.”
AI FOR BEGINNERS Anthem has covered off ChatGPT and also looked to explain Gemini and Claude, too. “We’ve got guides that cover everything from work usage to home and leisure requirements in our Ultimate Guides and Beginner Guides, then we go into a bit more depth for issues such as Mastering Prompts and Automate Your Life,” Fitzgerald says. Next up is this month’s Beginner’s Guide to ChatGPT. She exlains: “It does what it says on the tin. It’s about getting people using ChatGPT and experimenting with it. It’s a practical guide that encourages you to just get started with ChatGPT as that’s the most challenging part. Once you’ve overcome the fear, you’ll be amazed at the possibilities and just want to keep going.”
BEATING THE NAYSAYERS Furthermore, Anthem thinks that retailers’ conversations with customers can help sway them to find out more about a topic that is often misrepresented. “AI gets a lot of bad press,” she says. “There are constantly stories in the news that fuel the negative thinking, and things are changing so rapidly that people fear the unknown even more. “AI isn’t going anywhere, and it can have some really wonderful benefits. We need to put the fear to one side and be open-minded, experiment with it and learn more about it because it can help everyone with their everyday lives, whether they’re 18 or 80.”
WHAT TO STOCK • Beginner’s Guide to ChatGPT: 16 October, £9.99, 5059464431009 • ChatGPT For Seniors: 18 November, £9.99, 5059464431009 • ChatGPT As Your PA: 23 December, £9.99, 5059464431009
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TO ADD THIS WEEK
9 October 2026 RN For help with your magazine range, contact richard@luciddirect.co.uk
Terms change
Launch activity
One shot
Frequency one shot Price £9.99 Distributor Seymour Display with Classic Tractor Barcode 9781036997762
POKÉMON
l It’s the 30th anniversary of the launch of the original Pokémon, and the number-one title in the Primary Boys category is marking the event with some free gifts. These include a special birthday picture frame, as well as stickers and fun packs. The brand is currently enjoying a renewed burst of popularity, with the offer of free cards boosting its potential.
On sale 9 October Frequency monthly Price £6.99 Distributor Frontline Display with Lego Star Wars Barcode 9772513856900
MY GRATITUDE JOURNAL
l Publisher Bonnier is bringing the concept of more gratitude to the shelves with the launch of My Gratitude Journal, focusing on the benefits of positive psychology to improve mental health. The journal has space for reflections and also offers up exercises and mindfulness techniques.
On sale 8 October Frequency one shot Price £9.99 Distributor Marketforce Display with Breathe Barcode 5059464603000
KAWAII COLOURING
l Colouring magazines traditionally enjoy a Halloween fillip, so this, the second issue of the title that features cute creatures in the currently trending Kawaii style, should get a seasonal boost. It includes Halloween-inspired designs with ghosts, ghouls and monsters, and, publisher GMC says, inspires “fun and creative activity”.
On sale 15 October Frequency quarterly Price £7.99 Distributor Seymour Display with Creative Art Barcode 9781784947606
NEWSTEAM, THE UK'S LARGEST HOME NEWS DELIVERY COMPANY, WILL BUY YOUR DELIVERY ROUNDS
For a free, no obligation valuation of your business email donna.williams@newsteamgroup.co.uk or call 07305 789817
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Bumper issue
Spotlight
Lucid recommends
On sale 15 October Frequency one shot Price £10.99 Distributor Seymour Display with Breathe, Simple Things Barcode 9772515280024
MASSEY FERGUSON TRACTORS & EQUIPMENT On sale 15 October
l The second in a series of one shots from the team behind Classic Tractor and Heritage Tractor, looks at the output of this classic tractor brand between 1957 and 1964, including the one of the icons of British farming - the Massey Ferguson 35.
Free gift
HOW I’M GROWING MY SALES TODAY
BREATHE JOURNAL
l The Breathe ideals of “inspiration, reflection, self-exploration and creativity” are carried over into this special edition with a journal containing a 52-week planner. It offers more than just a planner, giving positive messages to its readers, and is aimed to work as a gift option in the runup to Christmas, as well as a self-purchase.
Special issue
SCOTT SAUNDERS Newsklip, Fakenham, Norfolk
ADDING TITLES It’s all about trying to keep the customers happy. It’s really important to let your customers know when you’ve got new titles in, and we’ll always try any new titles that come out. What we do is put new titles alongside some of our bestsellers, so it will attract interest from customers. But it’s not just about new titles.
OLD OPPORTUNITIES What I noticed recently is interest in some titles we used to stock but no longer have in. We had someone come in and ask for Diecast Collector. We used to stock it, but, like a lot of titles, once Covid hit, we stopped it. It reminded us about the magazine; we hadn’t seen it for a while. So, we got a couple in and they sold.
BACK TO THE FUTURE
There are a few like that, and because of the way systems work, you don’t always realise you haven’t seen titles for a while. So, we’re going to go back on our system, look for titles we haven’t had in for a while and see if they’re still publishing. If we used to sell them and they are still publishing, we’ll get them in. I think customers will feel the same – “I haven’t seen that for a while” – and will pick them up, partly to reminisce.
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12/12/2025 14:51
02/10/2026 14:44
NEWSTRADE TERMS
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STORE IMPROVEMENTS
STORE IMPROVEMENTS
35
RN 9 October 2026
PARTWORKS & COLLECTABLES Title
No
Pts
£
DEAGOSTINI American Cars
46
50
13.99
HACHETTE Build The Dalek Build The Ford Falcon XB GT Crochet Lace Disney Mini Books Disney Paint By Numbers Dungeons & Dragons Novels Warhammer Spearhead Winnie the Pooh Embroidery
91
140
11.99
108
130
10.99
86 37
120 100
5.99 5.99
53
80
5.99
3
100
31
120
36
120
5.99
PANINI
Starter Stkrs/cards
Adopt Me on Roblox! Dream Pets Adrenalyn XL FIFA 365 2027 Trading Cards Harry Potter Always Hello Kitty 2026 Stickers Minecraft 2026 stickers
4.99
0.90
8.99
1.80
8.99
1.80
5.99
1.00
5.99
1.00
Starter Stkrs/cards 5.99
1.00
6.99
1.00
5.99
1.00
5.99 5.99
1.00 1.00
9.99
3.00
11.99
3.50
9.99
2.00
9.99
2.00
TOPPS
11.99 9.99
Title Paw Patrol 2026 Stickers Spiderman Unlock Your Powers Stickers Squishmallows 2026 Stickers Stitch Stickers 2026 Toy Story 5 Stickers
F1 Turbo Attax 2026 Flagship Premier League 26/27 Trading Cards Match Attax UCC 2026/27 Trading Cards UCC Match Attax
OTHER Disney Lorcana: Attack of the Vine Trading Cards
4.99
Disney Lorcana Wilds Unknown Trading Cards
4.99
Funko Bitty POP! Stranger Things Mystery Figurine
3.00
Funko Bitty POP! Spider-Man
3.00
Title Funko Bitty POP! Toy Story Mystery Figurine
Starter Stkrs/cards 3.00
Funko Bitty POP! Pokémon Funko POP! KPop Keychains Funko POP! Mystery Minis: Spider-Man
10.00 5.00 6.00
Funko POP! Mystery Minis: Toy Story 5 Figurines
6.00
Funko Sanrio Bitty POP! Gashapon Demon Slayer K-Pop Demon Hunters Classic Trading Cards K-Pop Demon Hunters Sticker Sheet Littlest Pet Shop Pet Assortment Littlest Pet Shop Figurines Series 3 Littlest Pet Shop Surprise Plush Magic The Gathering: Hobbit cards Magic The Gathering: Marvel Superheroes Mojipops Rainbow Series
3.00 5.99 1.99 2.50 3.99 3.99 4.99 5.99 5.99
Title Sanrio Mini Nanoblock Blind Bag Shokugan: Kirby Friends Figure Shokugan Tamagotchi
Starter Stkrs/cards 4.99 4.99 2.99
Shokugan: Kirby Friends Figure Series 5 Stitch 2026 Trading Cards SuperThings Kazoom Power Warriors Yu-Gi-Oh! Blazing Dominion Yu-Gi-Oh! Rage of the Abyss
4.99 8.99
1.80 1.20 3.99 3.99
POKÉMON Pokémon Perfect Order Pokémon Phantasmal Flames Pokemon Pitch Black Pokémon Temporal Forces Pokémon Chaos Rising Pokémon 30 Celebration
3.99 3.99 3.99 3.99 3.99 3.99
1.00
NEWSPAPERS DAILY NEWSPAPERS price/margin pence/%
SATURDAY NEWSPAPERS
SUNDAY NEWSPAPERS
Sun
£1.30
26p
20%
Sun
£1.70
34p
20%
Sun
£2
40p
20%
Mirror
£2.20
37.95p
17.25%
Mirror
£3.50
60.38p
17.25%
Sunday Mirror
£3.80
67.45p
17.75%
Daily Record
£2 .20
39.05p
17.75%
Daily Record
£3.40
58.65p
17.25%
People
£3.80
67.45p
17.75%
Daily Star
£1.60
27.6p
17.25%
Daily Star
£2.30
39.68p
17.25%
Star Sunday
£2.60
44.85p
17.25%
Daily Mail*
£1.30
28.34p
21.8%
Daily Mail*
£1.70
34.9p
20.5%
Sunday Sport
£2.20
48.4p
22%
Express
£2.20
37.95p
17.25%
Express
£3.40
58.65p
17.25%
Mail on Sunday*
£2.30
47.2p
20.5%
Telegraph
£4
66.5p
16.6%
Telegraph
£5
83.25p
17%
Sunday Mail
£3.80
70.3p
17.75%
Times
£3.20
60.8p
19%
Times
£4.50
80p
17.78%
Sunday Telegraph
£4
66.5p
16.6%
FT
£3.70
74p
20%
FT
£5.40
£1.125
20.83%
Sunday Times
£5
90p
18%
Guardian*
£3.50
71.75p
20.5%
Guardian*
£4.50
92.25p
20.5%
Observer*
£5
£1.05
21%
i
£1.20
25.8p
21.5%
iWeekend
£2
43p
21.5%
Scotland on Sunday £2.80
61.6p
22%
Racing Post
£5.70
£1.03
18%
Racing Post
£5.90
£1.08
18.25%
Racing Post
£5.70
£1.03
18%
Herald (Scotland)
£3
60p
20%
Herald (Scotland)
£3.40
69.7p
20.5%
SundayHerald(Scotland) £3.20
62.24p
19.45%
Scotsman
£2.60
57.2p
22%
Scotsman
£3.10
68.2p
22%
Sunday Express
£3.80
65.55p
17.25%
The National
£1.60
26.88p
16.8%
The National
£1.60
26.88p
16.8%
Sunday Post
£2.95
59p
20%
* Premium terms available for home delivery copies
The National
£2.80
50.4p
18%
How to
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WHOLESALE
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Scottish symbol invasion
KeyStore expands efforts to convert English store own more its brand Page 5 ers to »
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KNOW MORE l SELL MORE l MAKE MORE Vol 137 No 41 £3.45
ORDER YOUR COPY from your magazine wholesaler today. Find out more at bit.ly/RNMagazine.
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