The free business newspaper CityAM is growing slowly but steadily. Its circulation is now close to 102,000 copies, a 47% increase since its launch in September 2005, and it could now expand out of London. Financially, CityAM made a 59,000 Euros profit for the six months ended in March, on revenues of 4,4m Euros for the period.
In many ways this small newspaper represents what a modern, focused daily should be:
- A lean and mean organization, built around a circulation calibrated for its audience, and which is small compared to other free UK papers (400,000 for Londonlite, 500,000 for The LondonPaper, 1.36m for Metro UK)
- Precise targeting: CityAM is distributed in the City of London at Canary Wharf, i.e. at the exit of only 17 subway stations out of the 572 in London. As a result, it enjoys a market reach greater than the Financial Times (actually, 80% of those who take CityAM have not read the FT when they arrive to work).
- Selective journalism: not only does CityAM bring its share of scoops, but it also manages to provide incisive analysis thanks to a sharp set of columnists. Its small staff also conducts excellent in-depth, fairly long, interviews. (CityAM is largely killing the idea that free press means only short articles).
- Editorial mix: a fair share of the paper is dedicated to lifestyle (about fifteen items spread all the week) and sport.
The result are enviable and solvent demographics, with readers making an average of 80,000 Euros a year. Not the grandiosity of the Financial Times, but way more readers per stories. (You can find more stuff on the subject in PressGazette and in the Newspaper Innovation blog.
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