Specialty advertising papers sold
A publication that’s a familiar flip-through for people hunting for used convertibles and pickup trucks is being sold as part of a larger $51 million dollar deal.
Nickel Nik’s Wheel Deals, a free magazine for car seekers, is among a handful of area advertising publications being sold by Lee Enterprises Inc. The sale involves two dozen Northwest publications and several buyers, a company news release said.
Target Media Partners, a Los Angeles-based company specializing in advertising and niche publications, is buying 19 Eastern Washington specialty advertising papers — including several versions of Nickel Nik that circulate in the Spokane area — plus Lee’s local commercial printing operation.
This is the first foray into the Northwest market for the company, said Jim Sington, executive vice president of Target Media Partners.
The local publications are similar to Target Media Partners’ other publications and have shown steady growth over the past few years, he explained, adding, “For us, it’s just an expansion of our core business.”
Lee Enterprises’ local operations are based in Airway Heights. The company has several sales offices and 150 employees who will retain their jobs, Sington said.
Different Nickel Nik publications cater to people looking for cars, recreational vehicles and other goods and are distributed through racks located at grocery and convenience stores and other retail settings. The company’s weekly publications include Driveline and reach about 128,000 consumers a week. Home Buyers Guide, which circulates about 17,500 copies a month, is also included in the purchase agreement along with several Web sites and a commercial printing operation.
According to the company Web site, Target Media Partners has 43 classified advertising and car photo ad papers that are distributed to local markets in 21 states. Additionally, the company has magazines geared toward trucking and closeout industries.
The Eastern Washington agreement also includes publications in Kennewick, Moses Lake, Wenatchee and Walla Walla.
In separate deals, Black Press Ltd., a Canadian company, is purchasing Lee’s advertising publications based in Seattle and Portland. News Media Corp. is acquiring the Newport News-Times, a twice-weekly newspaper in Oregon.
Dan Hayes, spokesman for Lee Enterprises Inc., said the company is selling off its stand-alone publishing and commercial printing operations in the Pacific Northwest to focus on its daily newspapers, online sites and specialty publications. Lee owns 53 daily newspapers, including the Missoulian, Billings Gazette and the Arizona Daily Star.