City AM will provide business and financial news for many of Reach’s biggest newspaper titles including the Daily Express.
The new partnership comes as City AM appoints Christian May as editor-in-chief – a return for the former editor after almost four years away from the newspaper (and journalism).
May will replace Andy Silvester, the former Sun PR chief who joined City AM as May’s deputy editor in September 2019 and then succeeded him in late 2020.
Silvester’s last day as editor was Thursday (18 July) and May will return at the end of August.
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The two-year deal between City AM and Reach will see the business newspaper’s content appear online in the Express, Business Live (which will continue its existing regional coverage) and sites in its Live network, plus in print in the Express, Manchester Evening News and Liverpool Echo.
Reach chief digital publisher David Higgerson said working together with City AM “will give us the opportunity to strengthen our quality business journalism offering across our portfolio, and them the chance to get their content in front of our engaged audiences, both nationally and locally around our strong regional centres”.
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Former Daily and Sunday Express business editor Geoff Ho – described as a hero after confronting the London Bridge attack terrorists in 2017 and getting stabbed in the neck – announced on 2 July that he had left the company after 17 years and was now on gardening leave.
City AM chief operating officer Harry Owen said: “This partnership has provided us with an incredible opportunity to combine resources and provide readers with best-in-class journalism that tackles both local and national issues under one roof.
“As a market-leader, Reach is renowned for its regional coverage. The combination of this footprint, THG’s studio capabilities and City AM’s deep understanding of UK business is compelling.”
City AM has ambition to be ‘truly national’ publication
The publisher said the deal “forms a central part” of its “ambition to become a truly national business and finance publication”.
After traditionally sticking to London since its 2005 launch, City AM has this year hired its first UK editor launching a national newsdesk based in Manchester.
It is also moving to a new office in the City of London after outgrowing its current headquarters with growth in editorial and commercial.
City AM has grown its headcount from 40 to 53 since its takeover by online beauty and wellbeing retailer THG in July last year.
It had gone into administration but was rescued by THG in a pre-pack deal and subsequently broke even in the remainder of 2023 following investment in editorial (especially digital and video), commercial and the launch of its first app within six weeks.
Revenue in January to April was up 9% compared to the year before.
Fellow London free print newspaper Evening Standard is dropping its daily edition to go weekly, blaming “shorter commuting weeks, widespread Wi-Fi along our commuting routes and the desire for our readers to consume ever-richer content across a variety of platforms and devices”.
But, just as free newspaper Metro told Press Gazette this week it is profitable in print as well as online after a restructure in the past year, Press Gazette understands City AM has no plans to reduce its print circulation and that it is continuing on the growth trajectory described by Owen in March.
City AM upped its print distribution year-on-year by 1% to 68,112 in June, and kept it steady compared to May. Online the publisher said it gets 2.4 million unique website visitors per month.
Christian May back as City AM editor
May, who was editor from 2015 and through the first part of the Covid-19 pandemic when City AM was forced to take a hiatus from print, has described his time at the title as “the happiest and most rewarding years of my life”.
“I couldn’t be more excited to rejoin the team at City AM as it gears up for an ambitious era of growth and innovation,” he said, after a period back in PR/consultancy with Teneo, 5654 & Company and Hawthorn. For his first stint as editor he was plucked from the comms team at the Institute of Directors, a group for business leaders, aged 28 without any full-time journalism experience.
Owen added: “We have an ambitious plan for City AM’s future and Christian’s experience and track record will help ensure we deliver on those ambitions.
“Our newsroom is bigger than ever, and growing, while commercial innovation and investment continue to transform the business. Christian will lead a dynamic editorial team of journalists and will play a key role in serving our readers across the country, growing our audience and supporting the business on its next stage of growth.”
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