In a rather surprising move, online health and beauty retailer THG adds print publishing to its portfolio, buying the UK-based free business newspaper City AM, saving it from administration.
WHO: City AM was founded in 2005 by Lawson Muncaster and Jens Torpe as a London-based business newspaper covering the latest economic, political, and business news and comment, sport, and lifestyle features. Cityam.com has around 3.2 million unique visitors per month, primarily based in London and across the UK.
The City AM newspaper is distributed at more than 400 commuter hubs across London and the home counties, as well as London City Airport and offices throughout the city, Canary Wharf, and other areas of high business concentration.
THG was founded in 2004 by Chief Executive Matthew Moulding and CFO John Gallemore, retails more than 8,000 brands, and operates more than 160 localized websites across 35 languages and 42 currencies. THG has become one of Europe’s largest online retailers of premium beauty brands. Other holdings include Cult Beauty, Eyeko, Illamasqua, ESPA, SkinStore, RY, Glossybox, Lookfantastic.com, Grow Gorgeous, Ameliorate, Acheson & Acheson, Christophe Robin, and Perricone MD.
WHY: The 18-year-old freesheet has been on the brink of administration. Hit hard by the change in commuter habits after the coronavirus pandemic, the advertising slump, and the soaring costs of printing and paper, City AM racked up £1.2 million in debt by the end of 2021. THG operates a beauty-related online publishing arm with two magazines and has content syndication partnerships with Google and Bloomberg. This deal moves them into print publishing for the first time.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS: In a post on its website. City AM said the deal means that the nearly 18-year-old newspaper will “remain under UK ownership and give it the support of a partner with long-term aspirations and a strong balance sheet for growth.”
THG founder and Chief Executive Matthew Moulding told the BBC, “We've long been reviewing opportunities in the disruptive media space but have waited for the right time and the right opportunity to make a digital step-change."
In a LinkedIn post about the deal, Moulding said the online retailer already spends “huge sums” at more than £200 million ($258 million) a year “speaking to consumers,” and the acquisition is a means to cut out the middleman when bringing content to consumers.
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