UK. Frontier, Frontier Brands and the Frontier Awards have been acquired by UK business and consumer publisher Metropolis Business Publishing.
The deal is the second relating to Frontier in recent months. The titles and awards were purchased from William Reed Publishing which in turn acquired them from Wilmington in September 2005 as part of a portfolio purchase.
“The magazine has a strong and proud heritage and the Frontier Awards have a unique place at the heart of the industry,” said Metropolis Business Publishing Managing Director Kevin Crook. “We look forward to investing the energy, innovation and resources which will take the Frontier brand to the next level.”
“This is great news for Frontier and the Frontier Awards,” added Associate Publisher Sarah Genest, who has been with the brand for nearly a decade. “These are particularly exciting times for travel retail, with both suppliers and retailers demonstrating unprecedented levels of creativity, and we are now well-placed to reflect all of these developments – both in the publications themselves and at the annual Awards.”
London-based Metropolis Business Publishing – which has a growing roster of specialist business publications – said it is delighted to have taken ownership of a brand with such a distinguished history. It said it is “determined that its titles will be more responsive to the evolving travel retail industry than at any point in Frontier‘s two-decade history”.
The company added: “In terms of day-to-operation, it’s very much business as usual. The Frontier Awards will remain the industry’s keynote ceremony, with preparations for the 2006 event already well underway. This year’s prestigious line-up of judges will be announced early next month.”
The only practical change is a relocation of the Frontier offices. With immediate effect, Frontier and the Frontier Awards are based at Central House, 27 Park Street, Croydon CR0 1YD.
In related news, long-time International Sales Manager Peter Frohlich has left the company. He left before Metropolis acquired the titles.
For more information, please contact:
Sarah Genest
Associate Publisher
+44 20 8253 8388
sarah.genest@metropolis.co.uk
Ben Grant
Acting Editor
+44 20 8253 8393
ben.grant@metropolis.co.uk
MORE STORIES ON FRONTIER
Double triumph for Bahrain Duty Free as it scoops twin Frontier Awards – 04/11/05
Wilmington sells Frontier magazine and Awards to The Grocer publisher – 16/09/05
