The challenge
For a while local news seemed on the verge of extinction, with publishers pulling back from this kind of activity across the board. And yet, as evidenced by the rise of new local and hyperlocal publishers, stories about contentious planning issues, community events, and even missing pets, seem to be back in vogue.
This resurgence of interest is potentially better news for newspaper printers. And it might be particularly good news for anyone who fancies starting a local publication of their own.
A great place for them to look to for an idea of what’s involved in publishing as well as printing a local newspaper, is Newbury Weekly News Group.
Located in Newbury in West Berkshire, the company has been both publishing and printing the Newbury Weekly News for nearly 150 years. Around 40 years ago, it also started to contract print other titles, giving it another source of revenue and helping to further expand the business.
Now the company prints a wide array of respected short-run local titles, including a range of entrepreneur Sir Ray Tindle’s newspapers, such as the Farnham Herald. “We have printed the Maidenhead Advertiser for 40 years and the Henley Standard for over 20 years, both also independent titles,” says company chairman Jeremy Willis.
“The Newquay Voice is my favourite of the products that we’ve printed,” says head of production and print sales James Harris.
Willis adds: “I agree. In terms of the design I like it a lot, and it’s printed on good paper, which makes a difference. But I have to say that the Farnham Herald, Sir Ray Tindle’s
flagship title, has to be one of the most impressive broadsheets in the country.”
Dividing attention and resources to ensure both the publishing and printing sides of the business remain profitable is no mean feat. On a number of occasions the company has seriously considered getting rid of its printing presses altogether and finding another company to take on that work.
But to date it has always decided to keep them running, opting instead to rise to the challenge by keeping up to date with both emerging publishing and new print technologies.
The method
Keeping the print side of things profitable has always been about ensuring contract publisher customers always come first, reports managing director James Gurney. “We always put our customers first. We’d move our own title and be late ourselves before we’d ever move a client’s print job,” he says.
“If people have a problem, you can invite them into the office and they can see the product being produced and see the text and copy coming off the actual press,” he adds of how important close working relationships with clients are when working with local newspaper publishers.
The right kit has also always been key. In 2004, with colour printing increasingly in demand from readers and advertisers alike, the company replaced its old Solna press and bought a new Goss Universal 70 colour web offset press with six towers, which is capable of printing up to 96 tabloid pages in one pass with colour on every page. The firm also runs two Goss Uniliners and a range of stackers, strappers, underwraps and overwraps, a Tolerans stitcher and a Schur high-speed inserter.
Making a success of the publishing side of the business is about keeping up with emerging publishing trends and technology. The Newbury Weekly News was one of the first regional newspapers to have electronic page make-up and one of the first six regional newspapers in the country to be on the internet.
“Even though we are extraordinarily traditional with our paper product, which people have a very high level of respect for, we’ve seen a big shift towards digital and feel that investment is necessary in order to ensure that we continue to grow,” says Gurney.
The newspaper is now available to read online as a free digital edition, and the company has plans to launch it as an app in the near future.
“I believe that young people engage far more with digital than they do newspapers and therefore we need to ensure that we’re hitting the digital audience. Mobile is the fastest growing part of our business,” says Gurney.
Another tip for wannabe publishers, Newbury would impart, is to check in regularly with advertisers and readers to ensure content is as engaging as possible. The firm carries out extensive market research every three to four years, and says it always acts on the findings.
“We did a significant amount of editorial and commercial advertising market research just before Christmas. Some of the changes we’re currently going through at the moment are a result of the findings that we had with how our readers are consuming and engaging with our titles,” explains Gurney.
Key to running a business specialising in both print and publishing, is versatile staff. Gurney says Newbury’s multi-skilled employees are all trained to be able to work across different parts of the firm. “We’ve got people that are more than capable of selling our titles, but who can also roll up their sleeves and operate the presses if they have to. I think that skillset across different areas is vital to the success of our company,” he says.
The result
The family-owned company treats these staff very much as part of the family, reports Gurney, and the result is strong staff retention, which has the knock-on effect of creating a business with a highly approachable, community-oriented feel. This is essential to working closely enough with the local community to bring in news stories and attract advertisers.
“There’s a real sense of care that comes out of this building. Everybody wants the business to be successful and they know that if it’s successful then they’ll be successful. Our staff turnover is at around only 5% and our workers are very loyal,” says Gurney.
“A lot of the local businesses like the fact that we’re printed in the same building that we’re produced in. It creates a bond with the people that advertise with us, and our readers as well. The fact that we have a local presence and people can walk into our reception and talk to us as human beings still goes a long way,” he adds.
Willis adds: “We’ll often have a story up before it goes into the nationals, which shows how strong and close we are to the community. If somebody fired a shotgun in Newbury, that would be up on the website within an hour.”
In fact, over the years, the paper has covered many stories that then became major national news, such as the Greenham Common protests of the 1980s and the shootings in Hungerford in 1987 by Michael Ryan.
The ability to act and react quickly has proven to be another of the firm’s strengths, and one of the major benefits of being an independent business with fully in-house facilities.
“Decisions get made very quickly and therefore the business can move very quickly too if it needs to. We can respond to market needs far quicker than most,” says Harris.
“If we come up with a great idea today, we can print it ourselves tomorrow. It gives us huge flexibility to do our own thing,” adds Gurney.
The company’s £11m turnover is split evenly between the two sides of the business, which is testament to the equal care and attention that it pays to both its publishing and printing operations, and the continued investment that it makes not only in new printing equipment but also in up-to-date computers and technology for its editorial side.
With such an established and successful business model, the company seems to be going from strength to strength. “We’ve been around in Newbury for 150 years and we’re looking to be around for many years to come,” concludes Willis.
VITAL STATISTICS
Newbury Weekly News Group
Location Newbury, West Berkshire
Inspection hosts Chairman Jeremy Willis, managing director James Gurney and head of production and print sales James Harris
Size Turnover: £11m; staff: 86 (50 in publishing and 36 on the printing side); premises size: 929m2
Established In 1867 by Walter Blacket and Thomas Wheildon Turner
Products Publishes and prints the Newbury Weekly News. Prints a range of newspapers for other publishers including the Maidenhead Advertiser, the Henley Standard and a number of titles for Sir Ray Tindle including the Farnham Herald
Kit Goss Universal 70 web offset press with six towers and two Goss Uniliners, a range of stackers, strappers, underwraps and overwraps, a Tolerans stitcher and a Schur high-speed inserter
Inspection focus
Successfully operating as both a printer and a publisher
TOP TIPS
- Ensure that you get ‘micro close’ to the local community. “Keeping a high level of service and still representing the fourth estate is paramount. If you lose track of that you could easily lose your standing within the community,” says managing director James Gurney.
- Keep up to date with the latest technology and be prepared to invest to stay relevant. “We were one of the first of the regional news publishers on the internet and we have vast experience of local radio and of video production. We are well versed with providing information technology,” says chairman Jeremy Willis.
- Stay grounded as it helps to build and maintain close relationships. “There are very few places that you can pick the phone up to speak directly to the managing director and the chairman, but we’re one,” says Gurney.
- Listen to your readers and act upon market research. “You’re a very privileged business if you can spend £20,000 on a survey and then don’t do anything with the findings,” says Willis.
- Train staff to multitask and ensure that they know about all aspects of the business. “Having people with skill sets that cover different areas is vital to the success of our company and it’s fantastic for the editorial team and the sales team to be able to understand and see the printing process taking place,” says Gurney.
- Location is everything for a contract printer. Newbury Weekly News Group is located on the M3/M4 cross-route, giving it easy access to everywhere from Wales to London. With fewer newspaper presses around, it helps to be situated in a central area to be competitive.
- Don’t tie yourself into long publishing contracts of more than a couple of years. “The industry is so volatile that you need to have the flexibility to move around,” says Gurney.
