Bauer boss to Listener subscribers: 'We're asking for forgiveness'

Weeks after The Listener, Metro and North & South subscribers received correspondence saying they will receive their titles, the wait goes on.

The announcement this week that Bauer's New Zealand mastheads had been sold to private equity firm Mercury Capital sparked hopes subscribers would again be able to get their hands on their beloved local magazines.

But this proved too optimistic, as it soon became apparent that the New Zealand arm of the business was still set to be sold despite the change in overall ownership.

Speaking to the Herald after the Mercury announcement became public, Bauer Media chief executive Brendon Hill said the sale process had been delayed and thereby pushed back the return of some publications.

"The Listener and New Zealand Woman's Weekly are such an important part of the New Zealand fabric and society," Hill said.

"We really want to get them going again as quickly as we can … They should be out there now."

Hill wouldn't provide any specifics on when the sales process would conclude, saying only that it should come to an end soon.

"It all depends on the parties and how they negotiate," Hill said.

"We're asking for forgiveness for the delay until we can organise it."

Subscribers who paid in advance have been assured that they will get the complete number of magazines they paid for, with missed issues tagged onto the end of the subscription period. When this happens, however, is anyone's guess.

Bredon Hill, Bauer chief executive. Photo / Fupplied

Despite Bauer abandoning the local market, it has continued to publish a number of titles out of Australia, including Woman's Day New Zealand, Australian Women's Weekly, Lucky Break and That's Life. Bauer also recently resuscitated Property Press in the local market.

Notably absent from that list are any of the current affairs titles, which remain dependent on new owners stepping in to save them.

Mercury Capital's ownership of the mastheads doesn't appear to change this dilemma.

Asked whether there was any hope of The Listener, Metro or North & South returning if buyers weren't found, Hill couldn't offer any guarantees and reiterated the line that they were in talks with a number of potential buyers.

It's also significant that while the ownership structure of the business has changed, Hill was actively involved in the strategic decision to close Bauer in New Zealand. That strategy remains, regardless of who owns the business.

When news of Bauer's closure first broke, speculation on the street was that Hill's hands were tied and the decision came directly from the German owners.

But this week he countered this narrative and took ownership of the decisions made.

"I was thoroughly involved in that process," he said.

"It was a really difficult situation. Covid came on so fast and straight away we saw that the advertising market was going to be drastically impacted.

"Obviously, Europe got hit much quicker than Australia and New Zealand, so I already knew how bad it was going to get very quickly. We saw that the ad market would be affected for at least three to six months and that there would be a long recovery."

Further complicating matters was the fact that magazines were not considered an essential service, so they could not trade during the lockdown.

"It was a horrible decision to close it, but the Bauers acted incredibly honourably and sent down money to wind it up rather than going into receivership like some companies do. All creditors could be paid in full and all our staff could be paid their entitlements."

The one group of people who remain out of pocket at this stage are the loyal subscribers who simply want clarity on whether they will get their publications or refunds.

The forgiveness Hill asks for depends largely on how much longer it will take for these publications to finally change hands. And even if they do, there's no guarantee that all the titles will be revived.

Among the current affairs titles, The Listener seems to have a strong chance of returning in some form, but the same cannot be said of North & South and Metro.

At the end of 2019, The Listener had 43,000 paying subscribers, North & South had 17,000 and Metro sat further behind with around 4,800.

Many commentators have long questioned whether the magazine market remains big enough to retain two titles that seem to have so much overlap.

A new owner may be faced with the tough choice of having to jettison at least some of the portfolio to create a sustainable business.

Adding further complexity is the fact that whoever buys these titles is buying mastheads without the crew to steer the brands into the future. Having grown tired of the protracted sales process, many former staff members have moved on to alternative career prospects.

In marketing, we're often told that a brand is a promise – and when comes to an established magazine, that promise is crafted by the journalists and editors who toil behind the scenes for years, if not decades.

The readers of these publications have become used to certain standards over the years, and there's no guarantee that a new owner will be able to keep delivering what came before.

And if things aren't quite up to par when the magazines relaunch, asking for forgiveness isn't likely to be enough to convince previously loyal readers that it's still worth handing over their hard-earned cash.