A bright future in magazine publishing

Magazine publisher Future has reported a staggering 375% year-on-year increase in profits, with a cool £3.8 million profit generated in the six months to March 31.

Revenues have climbed by 35% to $41 million with online accounting for a tidy £4 million (a rise of 72%). Events have also contributed significantly to the fortunes of the magazine publisher by bringing in £3 million.

Much of the publisher’s success is being attributed to a series of high-profile acquisitions. In October or last year, Future acquired the parent company of Imagine Publishing – bringing 30 titles under the Future roof.

In January, the company then acquired a number of music magazines (including the popular Classic Rock and Metal Hammer titles) following the collapse of Team Rock.

These acquisitions have helped the publisher increase their subscription revenues to £25 million.

Speaking to journalists, Zillah Byng-Thorne, Future’s chief executive, said: “We have delivered another strong performance with substantial increases in both revenue and profitability, driven by organic growth and acquisition. We are seeing clear benefits from our operational gearing and we continue to focus on cash conversion.

“Our strategy to build a global scalable platform business for specialist media with data at its heart is gaining real momentum as we continue to diversify our revenue streams.

“The quality of our content – as a trusted destination for consumers and for our customers – allied with our market-leading and global super brands have driven further significant online audience growth.”

It would appear that Future is getting everything right at a time when so many other publishers are getting everything wrong.

They are finding efficiencies in scale, getting deep into their data and making it work for them by exploring new commercial ventures.

The Future at Future looks bright. There’s a lot the industry could learn from them.