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Home > BizTimes Daily > Archives > January 5, 2009
Publishers pull plug on Vital Source magazine
Published January 5, 2009 - BizTimes Daily
The majority partners of Vital Publications LLC announced this morning that the company will no longer print the Vital Source culture magazine in Milwaukee.
The company will continue to provide media distribution and creative services, including design, writing and copy editing, to Milwaukee businesses and nonprofit organizations, and to operate its website, vitalsourcemag.com. The website will be relaunched in early February with a new focus and features.
Although the magazine had a record year in 2008 and the company as a whole is expected to turn a profit for the first time since it was founded in late 2001, the recent sudden downturn in the economy has dramatically changed the magazine's revenue forecast for 2009, according to Jon Anne Willow, editor in chief and co-publisher of Vital Source.
According to the owners, the reduction in overhead realized by taking Vital Source out of production will keep the company cash-positive and positioned to continue its growth trajectory.
"This is what makes sense right now," Willow said. "It breaks our hearts to think we won't be putting Vital on the streets every month, but we're doing some very exciting things with our website to position ourselves well in the Milwaukee media mix, and the other divisions of the business are still stable and growing."
Vital Source will still hold its Fearless Leaders Awards ceremony on Thursday, Jan. 22, at the Eisner Museum, as well as its Gallery Night event, "Uncovered," a retrospective of Vital Source cover artists, on Friday, Jan. 16, in its space at 133 W. Pittsburgh Ave.
The company will continue to operate in its office and is not eliminating any staff, Willow said.
"This may seem like a step backwards," said co-publisher Mehrdad Dalamie, "but we believe it's the best way to keep ourselves and the business in a position of relative strength during these difficult economic times. Our primary objective is to still be here, and be strong, when conditions improve."
