Plugin for Small Business site – “Monthly Specials”

Hello!

I still very new to WordPress. I’ve started new web design project and on the recommendation of a web page designer I decided to use WordPress to construct a small business site. One of the business owners can’t quite stay on his feet all day anymore and he really enjoys writing his monthly newsletter column. So I thought he might really enjoy writing a column any time he wants and help customers via the web site, while not having to stand at the front counter of the store. WordPress seemed like a great idea.

With the idea of building off what the business has with their newsletter, I decided my client would need some way off posting monthly specials on their site.

OK, here’s the question: is there any plugin that I could use or modify that could display a monthly specials sidebar? A plugin where the client could upload a picture that would display as a thumbnail, a headline for the sale item, the sale price, and then a short description.

Also, I’ve been perusing various free themes but I would be open to buying a theme if I found just the right one. I see the site being a three column layout, with navigation on the left, the main content blog in the center and the specials column on the right.

Any constructive comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!