Media Week says Desmond and Myerson have recipe for profit
EXPRESS Newspapers duo Richard Desmond and Stan Myerson have been praised for their work by a key media publication.
Desmond and Myerson have been heralded for their profit-making abilities amidst difficult times in the world of publishing by Media Week.
In this week’s issue of the journalism publication, Editor Steve Barrett praises Desmond and Myerson's Northern & Shell for being in rude financial health, posting impressive pre-tax profits of £52m in 2007.
He highlights the success of OK! Magazine, which retains its number one position in the celebrity market with a weekly circulation of 607,000 and newsstand sales up 10% year on year.
And he describes how it has powered ahead of rival Hello! with scoops such as the Wayne Rooney and Coleen McLoughlin wedding, which sold two million copies.
Barrett, who describes OK! as "the jewel in [Express Newspapers] crown", says: “[Desmond and Myserson] took on Hello! in the UK and overhauled it against the odds."
Stan Myerson attributes such success to getting key celebrity interviews and giving readers value for money.
Myerson told Media Week: “You’ve got to get the big buy-ups consistently and invest in the total package.
“With OK! People get three magazines for the price of one – Hot Stars for the younger audience and a US section.”
In his weekly column Barrett also praised the pair for proving the critics wrong after investing $100m in OK! USA.
He said: “The magazine sells a million copies a week, making profit on certain issues.
“It looks set to start recouping the investment and prove the doubters wrong.”
Myserson added: “We’re breaking even in America, selling more than a million copies a week, and ad revenues have picked up dramatically.”
The group’s Star magazine is up 13% year on year and continues to expand, selling 287,000 copes a week, while New! Sells 434,000 per week.
Myerson added: “We love our newspapers and magazines and we have great fun doing it.
“We’ve done well with the British magazines and are very proud of them.”
Barrett added that the Express Newspapers chiefs have “a ruthless devotion to profit and scaling a business up or down according to circumstances.”
*** READ THE FULL ARTICLE ON DESMOND AND MYERSON AT MEDIA WEEK NOW ***
