We are 5 - Business & Innovation Magazine celebrates its 5th year
Today NK Media is celebrating five years of publishing Business & Innovation Magazine and we’re already looking forward to the next decade.
We launched in 2017 to provide what no other regional business publishers were doing well: to offer our readers informed business news across a region, not just a county. Business doesn’t stop at county boundaries, so nor should a business magazine confine its reporting.
Five years’ on, and the Business & Innovation Magazine brand is stronger than ever.
Business & Innovation Magazine was launched by two highly experienced publishing industry professionals: Business journalist Nicky Godding and magazine sales professional Kirsty Muir.
And what a journey it’s been so far...
We employ journalists who not only know the area, but also many of the companies they write about. We know that informed editorial offers a reliable perspective and Business & Innovation Magazine attracts thousands of regular readers to our daily news website and our published bi-monthly magazine.
Our readers scan our daily news website to discover the regional business landscape, new business opportunities, check out what the competition is doing, and be inspired by the creativity and innovation which thrives here. They read our bi-monthly business magazine for our in-depth editorial features, interviews with the region’s business personalities and regular sector company listings.
At the end of its first year, Business & Innovation Magazine attracted the attention and investment of James Palmer, a successful entrepreneur with substantial commercial interests, who became NK Media's Chairman in 2018.
James Palmer said: “The magazine stood out as a colourful, well-designed, well-produced, editorially rich publication which I actually wanted to pick up and read. It is backed up by a news-rich website, updated daily, which reflects the magazine’s strong brand. There is a future for print journalism. Just as Kindle reading has lost out to traditional print and albums are again being produced in vinyl, there is a market for quality magazines – but they must reflect how people want to access news and information by being available online too.”
The magazine has a growing business-to-business, corporate and commercial readership, from small and medium-sized enterprises to the region’s largest business success stories. It supports entrepreneurial and ambitious businesspeople, showcasing local innovation, talent, expertise and new ideas.
Business & Innovation Magazine is growing. However, there’s no denying that the last two years have been hugely challenging. There has not been a sector or brand unaffected by the pandemic, and we all needed to pause and take stock.
At Business & Innovation Magazine, we decided to tackle the challenge by investing. We now have what we consider to be the best regional daily business news website in the UK. As a result, we are dedicating more of our printed magazine pages to key business issues, giving more industry commentators and regional experts the opportunity to share their knowledge and undertake sector analysis.
Business & Innovation Magazine covers regional business news, topics and sector updates, and national business news through a regional perspective across, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Worcestershire, Warwickshire, Coventry, South Gloucestershire, Bristol, Swindon and Thames Valley.
Importantly the magazine and website offer a unique resource for research. Those seeking to boost their knowledge of the regional business economy to gain new customers, clients or competitive advantage, can quickly gain a picture of the most important companies and business activities by regularly reading the website.
Nicky Godding, Business & Innovation Magazine co-founder and Editor in Chief, said: “We’re proud of our achievements, but we couldn’t produce such a strong magazine and daily news website without our clever editorial and digital marketing teams, our regular photographer, Rob Lacey and guidance from our talented management team. “This is truly a team effort supporting the regional economy by delivering reliable and informative business news.”
Kirsty Muir, Business & Innovation Magazine co-founder and Commercial Director, said: “We are completely focussed on offering a targeted B2B advertising platform that helps companies raise their business profile. Whether they are looking to buy or sell across the region, recruit skilled employees, or share their teams professional expertise, we love working with our loyal customers on campaigns that deliver this.”
In the last FIVE years…
- Business & Innovation Magazine has printed 23 issues carrying more than 3,000 pages of business news
- We have posted our magazine to more than 207,000 named senior businesspeople from our unique, and regularly updated proprietary database
- Our daily news website has published over 10,000 business news stories
- Our e-newsletter has been sent to more than 2.7m recipients
- Before the pandemic, our in-person events attracted more than a thousand business people, and we will running more later this year
- More than 600 corporate and commercial companies have used the Business & Innovation platform to promote their businesses
Good quality regional magazines are exceptionally effective at serving business communities.
In 2021 we received much heart-warming feedback on the return of our printed issue, which gave us all the motivation to keep working hard to create a platform for our region’s businesses.
Regional magazines deliver a healthy dose of positivity and persuasion along with essential regional business news to help people and companies make the most of any situation, even one as challenging as a global pandemic, and our readers agree…
“Your magazine is one of the few I always read, because there’s always something interesting in it. I also like the broad range of stories from appointments to fundraises to broader news.”
“We love the wider geographic coverage and cross-sector focus of the magazine. It’s a global, and very inter-connected business world and what’s happening in neighbouring counties / complementary sectors is relevant to all of us in business and Business & Innovation magazine brings it all together”
“This is a veritable triumph. Thank you for all the support you provide to our community of businesses, organisations and charities, helping to bring enterprise and connections together and helping us all to generate awareness in our fields of work. This was never more needed than now, though it is must be so tough for you. THANK YOU”
“My client gets a great reaction whenever he’s featured on your website”
“I love your magazine. And I have forwarded it on to a number of people. Best magazine my in-box gets!”
“I just wanted to say how much I enjoy receiving your magazine because it gives a more balanced view on the regional economy than that you get from the mainstream media.”
“Well done – great achievement, and always look forward to my magazine coming through. Some great success stories being profiled!”
“We have been really pleased with this advertising opportunity and the way that you have handled it”