Your customers have picked up their food and chosen their wine, so what’s left? Help cap off a relaxing night in and save them a trip to the DVD rental shop by offering a range of DVDs and Blu-rays for either sale or rent. 

DVD and Blu-ray distributor MSE head of category management John Garner says there is a great opportunity to capture incremental sales by having a selection of films in your store it’s just a matter of getting the range right. 

“Retailers have to look at what’s available in their area before deciding and making sure they have a selection to match,” he says. 

MSE researches localities near convenience stores and assesses which types of film would perform best. “It varies greatly from area to area; stores close to schools will do well with children’s titles, whereas stores in cities or near to universities will sell more adult and comedy titles,” adds Garner. “But it’s important to get the balance right. Even though one area is more likely to sell a particular genre, you can’t ignore others so you need to have a small selection to suit other tastes.” 

How to display DVDs is another factor for retailers to consider. While some go for a shelf display that allows customers to view the full range at once, the kiosk option is becoming popular with space-conscious store owners. Nisa-Today’s trading controller Steve Hodson says that DVD vending machines and touch-screen ordering kiosks take up less space, leaving more room for other products. He adds that the latter option has another benefit. “The touch-screen system means each customer needs to visit the till to pick up the DVD, which could potentially increase sales of other items.”

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Cash in: Staying in tonight - snacking - 15 October 2010
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