RANDOM THOUGHTS & Endless Rantings

Hmm....its has been 3 years since this blog have started and here I am still blogging away everyday & week to try to bring the latest news on the best magazines freebies in town. How time flies and I am really surprise that people still take the time to read my blog.
Today, is a quiet time for me to reflect on the pass 3 years, the ups and downs of my life including this blog which as grown from a baby to a man and now probably an old man...Haha, & myself...Even though this is an interest of mine...and trust me my interest normally last for days except for this blog...I am now genuinely beginning to think if this blog still serves its original purpose.
Thinking back, when I first started out...magazines freebies were still a pretty novel concept and even Japanese Magazines do not give them often also. Local Magazines will give out some freebies periodically and are normally cheap Eco Tote Bags, Scarf or some cosmetics/perfume samples but as they do not happen often, people take great interest in them and are quickly snapped up and sales of the magazines often ed doubled or tripled compared to the normal versions.
And then, comes the Japanese Magazines freebies...Like the Tsunami, they came in waves and waves ...giving out tote bags and cosmetic pouches featuring brands like YSL, Anna Sui,Fred Perry,Marc Jacobs and Agnes B...competing directly with the local magazines even though their prices are tripled. The idea of a branded freebie that is banded together with a magazine is a sure way to boost sales especially in the brand conscious society of Singapore. In the early days, it is not uncommon to see queues forming in Kinokuniya waiting for the release of the magazines so that they can be sure that they can get a copy...the phenomenon continued for months and just when you thought that the novelty will wear off, better brands such as Gucci, Anteprima & Coach & even Tiffany & Co jumped in the Bandwagon...further sustaining the hype. Japanese Brands not commonly found in Singapore also came out with their speciality catalogues that gave a branded bag together with the Mook(aka Japanese Catalogue Book) exposing the locals to brands like Headporter, Bathing Ape, Snidel,Tsumori Chisato & Samantha Thavasa etc. Recently, the hype is almost gone and the momentum is somewhat slowed down by the fact that there is not a big enough fashion market to sustain the continued high sales of the magazines unlike in Hong Kong where the Japanese Brands presence can be felt in almost every section of the Fashion Industry. Usually, the Japanese Magazines will feature a particular brand which the freebie originated from (a form of advertising also) and the items can be easily found in almost every big shopping malls in HK unlike in Singapore...After awhile, it really makes no sense for me to buy a magazine that does writeups on items not readily available here, and the brand is probably not famous here due to its non presence and I would rather save my money to buy better bags etc...Despite that, die hard fashionistas still flock to Kinokuniya every Wednesday & Friday hoping to grab the latest fashion magazines that gives out the best Branded Freebies.
So what do the local magazines do? Some jumped into the bandwagon like Elle SG which gives out branded bags from Agnes B, Hansel and NoteBooks from Follie Follie and others just came out with their own magazine brand Tote Bags or Pouches...which boosted sales also. Kinokuniya also participated in a couple of magazine exclusive promotions that gives out cosmetics, facial & body products, food, cultery etc which proved to be extremely popular with the local customers here. Australian Magazines not be outdone also comes with free dresses and tshirts from Aust Brands and also sometimes from brands like FCUK etc... UK Magazines like Shout & Bliss gives out Cosmetics every issue all in the attempt to capture a slice of the pie of customes..
After a while, the trend now moves towards magazines from other parts of Asia such as Korea, HK, Taiwan and China Magazines. Korean and Taiwan Magazines tend to favour giving out Cosmetic products as those are the major advertisors in the magazines, while HK & China Magazines often give out branded bags and pouches although in recently years, the freebies range from USB Phone Chargers, Slippers, Earphones to recently Phone Acessories such as covers, protective stickers etc. In this manner they are more innovative and are always keeping the readers interested in what is the next upcoming freebie. The Magazines from HK & China are the Hottest Thing in the market right now just behind the Japanese Magazines and Books Kinokuniya happens to be the biggest retailer selling them.

When I first started out, there are many bookstores in Singapore competing with each other for Magazines sales, but recently with the closing of Borders and Page One, there aint really a big Bookstore that are very well stocked in Magazines except Kinokuniya...(SO if you want them to continue surviving in the Market, PLEASE BUY MORE)...and a few independent magazines retailer in the Chinatown Bugis area that stocks Chinese Magazines...English Magazines can be found in almost every newstands but if you are looking for those with Freebies, it is either in Kinokuniya, MPH or Times and sometimes Popular Bookstore.

So writing for so long, I also dunno where this post is heading but looking at the recently onslaught of EMagazines appearing in the market and Magazines titles closing...I see with a tingle of sadness that Magazines retailers and Bookstores are still running Business the Old Way instead of rolling together with the changes in time due to different consumer tastes, buying attitudes and the different levels of competition in the age time & space...which reminds me of the American Automobile Industry today & how it fails to compete against Car Makers from Japan, China, Korea & Europe.

Ford is a American Car Company whose founder generally credited as the Father of Automotive Industry...Inventors of the assembly line techniques for mass productions and all...During the booming days of the Car Industry, no one came close to touching Ford or threaten their market position....but recently their positions are being overtaken by Japanese such as Toyota and the US Automobile industry is 3rd behind Japan and China in terms of production volume & sales.
There is nothing wrong with Ford Vehicle nor their Brand Name. In fact, the Ford company has one of the lowest recall rates for Automobile Vehicles and in general their cars are known for the reliability, low accident rate and is generally a safe vehicle to own....but too me.... they are too good and clean to a point that they they get boring and the vehicle design isnt exactly breathtaking to compete with the Japanese and European AutoMakers. Granted that safety is the 1st pirority in vehicle design which I AGREED completely but it doesn't take a genius to tell people that cars are meant to be driven and to be SEEN. A boring Car body Design aint the way to attract buyers especially where in sales perception and brand name rules and other considerations comes in later....which brings me to my own experience which I am relating below....

I used to work for a Major Electronics company that is very well known in the market...the company placed heavy emphasis on production processes and quality control and its expertise in this area is unparallel in the market or in the industry...In fact it has produced products that has a longer lifespan than any competitor in the industry I presumed....yet in terms of WorldWide Sales, it has fallen behind another competitor whose product cycles and range changes every few months and its marketing channel is in such full force that people will buy a new range of product before the old one fails thereby reducing the need for a long product lifespan....which I wonder, why would people buy a new product when the old one is still working well?... I am always the Marketing Kinda of person even in my old company and I seriously dont deal well with operational or processes kinda stuff..

So what I am trying to say is that it is important that we maintain an efficient operational system of workflow. a good system of production processes, but on the public perception, if we are seen as out of date or boring, no matter how good the backend is, if no one buys your product or brand..no one is paying your salary.....Innovation, rebranding, updating of sales strategies are now as important as operational restructuring, processes streamling or even more important in the everchanging consumer taste environment where a fad can come and go in matter of days....and in a front line retail industry it is even more important than ever since now competition can come from from everwhere and the markets are getting smaller and smaller....

Speaking of which, I feel it is time for me to explore other channels of relaying information to my readers via twitter and other means....cos after awhile, I also feel that my blog is getting kinda boring anyway...hopefully, people reading this can get the message that I am sending out...cos there is more than 1 way to boost up a business...Thinking Innovatively and Out of the Box is one of them........