Anderman: next to take a crack at IT's Retail Press

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, August, 1989 by Jean Marie Angelo

Anderman: Next to take a crack at IT's Retail Press

New York City--Lost somewhere within the fifth largest media company in the world is a business magazine division waiting to thrive. This is the story of International Thomson Retail Press (ITRP), the 10 magazines that include Consumer Electronics and Video Business.

At the helm of this division is Arthur Anderman, the third president in five years. His mission will be to grow the division beyond its break-even status and bring the unprofitable titles into the black. Anderman is a veteran of business magazine publishing with a resume detailing a 25-year tenure at Lebhar-Friedman, and a more recent stint at Cahners, overseeing Variety. Now, he wants to make ITRP "the pre-eminent publisher of trade magazines in the world."

When he walked through the door of ITRP in May he saw some strong books, though they had major flaws. They hadn't changed with the industries they were covering, says Anderman. Ex-staffers say the division has suffered from pervasive inconsistency and large-scale personnel defections. The division has already seen one casualty in the folding of Product Marketing earlier in the year.

ITRP executives concede their deficiencies. "There are numerous areas that need to be improved as soon as possible," asserts Charles Daly, president and CEO of International Thomson Business Information, Inc., the man who selected Anderman.

Anderman's experience in marketing, sales and publishing management were the characteristics that attracted Daly's attention. At Lebhar-Friedman, Anderman was publisher of several titles, including Nation's Restaurant News, and launch architect of National Home Center News.

As an alumnus of Lebhar-Friedman, which is chiefly known as a business publisher that caters to retail markets, Anderman might seem like a perfect fit for ITRP, but the last two presidents came from Lebhar-Friedman, as well. Stu Horton served as president for three years; Robert Doll for 15 months. Both have gone on to other corporate positions at Thomson. While Horton came from an editorial background, Doll had experience in circulation and financial strategy.

Anderman brings different skills to the table, says Daly.

Employees describe Horton's style as somewhat scattered, whereas Doll was a bottom-line man who believed in cost cutting. The result, they say, was an ITRP that sliced away its editorial strength. Almost every magazine's editorial staff was trimmed, and the magazines came to rely heavily on freelance writers. Policy was inconsistent, adds one ex-staffer. "Every couple of months something else would change. One month someone's book would report to so-and-so, six weeks later it would report to someone else."

Over time, ITRP lost its "passion," adds Arthur Rosenfield, the business analyst who, several years ago, helped sell Modern Floor Coverings, Non-Foods Merchandising, Toy & Hobby World, and other magazines that were part of the former U.S. Business Press, to ITRP. "There was no passion to be the leader in the markets and to really understand how they ticked. The products deteriorated. They literally atrophied."

Rosenfield notes that the five former U.S. Business Press titles, including Product Marketing, were profitable when ITRP bought them. Today, it is likely that less than half the 10 ITRP magazines are in the black, speculates Rosenfield.

As the magazines at ITRP grew thinner over the last few years, morale sunk, say employees. Richard Ekstract, a former ITRP publisher, left to start T.W.I.C.E., a publication that has taken business away from Consumer Electronics. The division recently lost its editorial director, Art Levis, to Video. Top level editors at Toy & Hobby World, Audio Times and Video Business all left.

What's a president to do? For starters, Anderman plans to invest in rebuilding staff, especially in editorial departments. "We've been using too many freelancers. We'd be better off with people who can get to know the industries and be more credible in what they publish." Daly has already put in place a new editorial director, Howard Roth, drafted from CMP Publications. A research director has also joined the fold, and the addition of a personnel director was scheduled as a measure to buoy morale. A manufacturing director will be brought in to get the magazines out on time, says Anderman.

Sales training is also necessary, notes Anderman. "There is nothing wrong with reviewing the basics." Further he plans to adopt a Lebhar-Friedman policy of having publishers and sales reps work for one week a year in the industries they are covering.

While Rosenfield believes that Anderman has the drive to bring about a turnaround, he questions whether time is running out for the division. "I think it is likely that ITRP will become very acquisitive," says Rosenfield. Acquired properties will give the division new niches, and hence new chances for success. Anderman concedes that he will not ignore the acquisition opportunities that come up, but stresses that his immediate order of business is reviewing the products at hand. There is also a chance that spin-offs will come out of existing properties, he adds.