Two magazines with a focus on entrepreneurship, Inc. and Fast Company, are on the selling block and five bidders are offering between $40-50 million to buy them from their current owner G+J USA Publishing. Mediaweek.com reports that this is definitely a fire sale. "G+J in 2000 acquired Bernard Goldhirsch's Inc. for $200 million and Mort Zuckerman's Fast Company for $350 million." That's right -- they are being sold for less than 10 cents on the dollar of the original purchase price paid five years ago.
Entrepreneurship magazines have been a tough business. The old Venture magazine, one of my favorites, died a quiet death several years ago.
BusinessPundit has been keeping us up to date on the progress of this sale over the past few months. I agree with Rob that this is an opportunity to help get Fast Company "back the way it used to be."
I have been a reader of Inc. for over twenty years. I would hate to see the incredible archives of this magazine get lost in this transaction. The search engine on its website is a treasure chest of ideas and information for business owners. I would not be surprised to see the search engine, which is now a free resource, become tied to subscriptions under a new owner like so many other magazines and newspapers are doing.
I have been frustrated by Inc's editorial slant the past several years, finding it is often indistinguishable from the mainstream media on many topics. When reading about the economy or public policy issues it has sounded more like the New York Times than a magazine geared toward the foot soldiers of free enterprise.
Wouldn't it be wonderful for one of these magazines to become a real advocate for entrepreneurs and small business? Keep the small business tips, but add consistent coverage of issues from a small business perspective, including taxes, regulation, and government policy.
