22nd August 2006
BROOKLANDS GROUP CONFIRMS 2007 PLANS INCLUDING LAUNCH, ACQUISITION AND DIVESTMENT
- UK's fastest-growing publisher shuffles pack
- Major consumer launch planned for spring 2007
- Two key customer magazine contract wins
- Significant investment confirmed for A Place in the Sun
- Four existing consumer titles offered to new publishers
- Acquisitions sought in complementary areas
In response to some ill-informed media speculation, Brooklands Group is pleased to confirm in outline its 2007 plans in order that its shareholders, partners and staff can continue to focus on a business plan that has seen the UK's fastest-growing publishing company develop from a £3.3m turnover to nearly £18m in just three years. Reports of a death of any kind have been greatly exaggerated.
Major consumer launch planned for spring 2007
Brooklands Group is pleased to confirm the news-stand launch of Popworld Pulp for next spring, an all-new music and entertainment magazine produced in conjunction with Channel 4's iconic hit TV show, Popworld. The Popworld Pulp project will be the company's most ambitious launch yet and, consequently, a ten-strong team is already in place and working on a pilot issue well ahead of time. Reflecting the sea-change in how anybody under 25 consumes music and the music media, Popworld Pulp will surprise and delight the market in equal measure. Further details will be confirmed separately.
Two key customer magazine contract wins
In conjunction with its new global partner, Meredith Integrated Marketing (part of the USA-based Meredith Corporation), Brooklands Group is delighted to announce it has won the exclusive worldwide contract to produce customer magazines for DaimlerChrysler's Jeep, Chrysler and Dodge brands. With circulations in excess of six million copies in North America, and a further 18 editions in 13 languages worldwide where Chrysler and Jeep are published under the Freedom masthead and Dodge as a stand-alone title, this substantial portfolio of magazines will be jointly-produced by a transatlantic team drawn from both partner companies. Again, further details will be confirmed separately.
Significant investment confirmed for A Place in the Sun brand
The UK's best-selling overseas property magazine (no rival title sells even half as many copies), A Place in the Sun - official Channel 4 magazine of the hit TV show - has enjoyed a strong twelve months following its being named PPA IPAC Magazine of the Year. Circulation is buoyant and its sister exhibition (the biggest of its kind in the world) has just enjoyed its fourth outing and attracted some 18,000 visitors to Birmingham NEC. But for 2007 comes further investment in the form of the launch of the International Property Directory developed exclusively for Tesco (just on sale) and a series of all-new, country-specific Buyer's Guide supplements. The former takes A Place in the Sun into a high profile retailer environment, while the latter adds value to both the reader proposition and a significant newstrade spend that has already seen WH Smith name A Place in the Sun as a category-defining 'halo' title and Marks & Spencer select the magazine as one of less than 40 titles it stocks in major stores.
Four existing consumer titles offered to new publishers
With A Place in the Sun in such rude health, the global DaimlerChrysler customer titles now in harness alongside publications from Renault and Vauxhall Motors plus further contract titles on the way (announcements are likely within weeks), Brooklands Group has decided to offer other publishers the opportunity to exploit four of its consumer titles - Location Location Location, Property Ladder, Supernanny and You Are What You Eat. All are the official publications of the Channel 4 television shows of the same name and enjoy sales of between 20,000 and 50,000 copies a month, dependent on title. Though all are moving steadily towards profitability, the company feels its resources are better deployed elsewhere at this time and - accordingly - will not commit to funding them into 2007. Expressions of interest are actively sought and, in the meantime, approximately 30 of the 50 staff affected by any closure decisions have been or will be redeployed within the business.
Acquisitions sought in complementary areas
It is Brooklands Group's declared intention, having re-balanced its interests into roughly one-third consumer publishing, one-third exhibitions and one-third customer publishing, to seek complementary acquisitions for the portfolio in those areas. Negotiations are already ongoing and further details will follow when appropriate.
Says Darren Styles, Chief Executive of Brooklands Group:
“While I'm flattered that Brooklands Group has achieved a scale of success whereby media speculation has become an issue, it's an inevitable by-product that you end up having to confirm much of that which should be obvious. Nonetheless, the opportunity to reinforce the value and prosperity we have built into the A Place in the Sun franchise for both Channel 4 and Freeform Productions is welcome, as is the chance to reiterate our ring-fenced investment in Popworld Pulp - an innovative new music magazine that will debut next spring.
“It's also timely that we are able to confirm our success in securing, in tandem with our trans-Atlantic partners at Meredith Integrated Marketing, the worldwide contract to produce the Jeep, Chrysler and Dodge customer magazines for DaimlerChrysler. This opens up a global opportunity for our business that takes us into new and exciting territories we fully intend to exploit.
“Simultaneously, we have had to review our internal priorities and, sadly, have come to the end of the line with four titles for which we had very high hopes indeed. But by taking the commercially prudent decision that we have - at a time when many publishers are finding themselves in the same position - we have had the chance to redeploy many of our best people and allow ourselves some opportunity to continue our growth and development via acquisition.”
Press contacts:
For Brooklands Group: Sue Lowry or Gillian Green, Magellan PR
Tel: 020 8875 2850
Email: gillian@magellan-pr.com
Email: sue@magellan-pr.com
Notes to Editors:
Brooklands Group is one of the UK's fastest-growing publishing and exhibition companies. Producing magazines for Channel 4 (A Place in the Sun), Renault UK (Renault Magazine), Vauxhall Motors (V*), DaimlerChrysler (Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge and Freedom magazines) and Tesco (International Property Directory), Brooklands Group also organises the world's biggest overseas property exhibition in the award-winning A Place in the Sun Live.