The two magazines are the most respected in the pub sector and the merger will create a stronger single title - to be called The Publican’s Morning Advertiser - combining the best items of content from each magazine, website and set of events.
The move will also create a single, stronger voice in representing the pub trade and far greater value for our commercial supporters and advertisers. This merger means that WRBM employs the largest group of journalists reporting on the UK on-trade - a team of 20 experts.
As part of an on-going strategic alliance with CGA, the circulation of the two magazines will be analysed and combined to give total market coverage for key outlets, as well as opening up new opportunities with an expectation of a substantial increase in net circulation anticipated to be as high as 25% to 32-34,000 copies.
For commercial partners, the move creates a powerhouse media brand with deeper and wider penetration within the pub sector.
The merger provides a more effective way of reaching an increased high-quality readership - without the need to use two titles.
Hospitality events
Events will be complimentary and will serve a wider variety of niches within the market. And there will be one website, containing the best features of both, giving licensees, suppliers and HQ’s a single portal into the most comprehensive collection of authored reports, news and retail advice the industry has to offer.
Tim Brooke-Webb, executive director of WRBM’s hospitality division, said: “We believe the merger of Morning Advertiser and The Publican is fantastic news for our commercial partners - it creates a single, unified platform for partners to communicate with an increased high-quality readership.”
The new title, The Publican’s Morning Advertiser, is the original name for the MA when it was launched in 1794.