BLAZE PUBLISHING FEATURE
Stanton delivers B
laze Publishing’s last minute rescue of the former Oyster House consumer magazine titles
may not have seemed the most obviously important news in the early months of this year, but for a business that depends on a thriving hobbyist market, which MI most certainly does, it could turn out to have been one of the more significant after all. With Oyster out of the game and
Play Music switching to online publishing, the only print-based alternative to Future Publishing’s titles was set to be Anthem’s Guitar & Bass and, respected as that title is, hobby markets ideally need a variety of consumer magazines to fuel the lust for new gear on which we all depend. This is an argument that Wes
Stanton, Blaze’s refreshingly down to earth MD understands very well. All Blaze’s 19 titles (they range from clay pigeon and airgun shooting, to game keeping, hair fashion and diesel cars) inhabit that difficult ‘niche’ area. It is increasingly hard territory to
survive in – as Oyster House’s demise cleaerly demonstrated – but it can be made to work and Stanton is determined to keep offering the MI business an alternative. “What’s important in any market is that there’s competition because
www.mi-pro.co.uk
competition is healthy. If you see one publishing company have it all its own way it can be quite damaging for that industry. For example in our core market, shooting, IPC are very dominant, but there are other, smaller, publishers that offer a slightly different product and provide choice for the industry. “The sign of a market that’s unhealthy
Wes Stanton believes good competition in the publishing business is crucial
“
is where you have one dominant player that charges whatever they like for advertising and gets arrogant and complacent about it.”
When you invest in editors you invest in people that you consider have their finger on the pulse of the market. Wes Stanton
But in order to succeed, Blaze
Publishing has to be able to deliver something that the industry isn’t getting elsewhere. What does Stanton think that is? “When you invest in editors you invest in people that you consider have their fingers on the pulse of the market and I think we have done that. Beyond that, you will also see that the availability of the titles will increase because we are substantially better placed to buy
the wayside – Blaze having concluded it was beyond resuscitation – Acoustic, Bass Guitar and Drummer now have a fighting chance with strong editors and resources that Oyster House lacked, Stanton says. “We’re very used to being a small player
and because we’re used to that, we know that we have to work hard and in a consultative way with our clients. We know we’re good at what we do in terms of delivering publicity and advertising, but we’re not arrogant about it and I think where we tend to win is with that consultative approach with people. “You have to be an activist within a
market to make it work. You have to invest and that doesn’t mean just open your cheque book, it means go and spend time with the community, understand what they want and find out how the market dynamics really work. “I think people will find us open- minded and not without a sense of humour which, in my opinion, is the most important thing in business.”
July 2012 35
Blaze Publishing, the Midlands-based niche market specialist that bought the former Oyster House magazine titles Acoustic, Bass Guitar, Drummer and Guitar Buyer earlier this year is determined to keep magazine diversity alive for the UK’s MI industry, MD Wes Stanton tells Gary Cooper…
promotions within the news trade than Oyster House were. “They are backed by our shows, too, which are niche marketing at its best – very consumer focused, with a 3,000 capacity, reflecting what we do in the magazines. They’re small, they’re already established and have a following.” Though Guitar Buyer has, sadly, fallen by
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