Worlds youngest publishers make money with free magazine

Nov. 12, 2010 - PRLog -- NORTHANTS SCHOOLBOYS ARE UK'S YOUNGEST PUBLISHERS
Corby teens celebrate young entrepreneur accolade

As newspapers and magazines across the UK battle to keep their business heads above water in the downturn, two Northants schoolboys are showing them how it could be done….

Fourteen year olds Sean Spooner and Louis Porter from Corby launched their quarterly magazine in June - and are today celebrating after scooping a prestigious award.

The proud teenagers picked up the Children and Young People's Partnership Young Entrepreneur Award just months after starting the Corby Magazine.

The magazine is distributed free and paid for by advertising - and is already turning a profit.

So how did the magazine come about - and do the boys have any adult help or a rich investor supporting their venture?

"Louis and I wanted to try our hand at a business project. We realised there was a gap in the market for a local magazine so thought we'd start one of our own," says Sean. "It was entirely our idea. We produce it on our own and fund it from the adverts.

"People have been very supportive and our parents and school have been brilliant, but the magazine itself is all our own work."

The boys also have the accolade of being the youngest magazine publishers in the UK - possibly the world, as Sean explains:

"We were interviewed by junior biz, an American website devoted to young entrepreneurs, about the magazine. During that interview we discovered an American girl named Savannah Britt had been named the world's youngest magazine publisher at the age of fifteen. Louis and I are just fourteen, so the website editor informed us we'd pipped Savannah's record and are proud to bring it home to the UK."

Junior biz editor Nick Tart, who interviewed the duo by email, said later:

"I had no idea they were so young. Due to their professionalism, I was thinking mid-thirties. They're awesome."

Louis is the sales and business director - he has the tough task of persuading local businesses to part with their cash for advertising space.

"It was really tough selling advertising for issue one when the magazine was just a dream - you could see advertisers thinking, 'am I going to hand over my money to a fourteen year old kid and never see it again?'  But it's become easier with issues two and three because they've now seen what we can do and know we can deliver.

"We covered our costs for the first issue and made a small profit with the second.  The third issue is a bumper Christmas edition which is due to go to print soon.

"In the space of just three issues, we've trebled the number of pages to thirty-six and we're now almost having to fight off the advertisers!"

Pint-sized Sean is the editor-in-chief - his job is to find the stories, attend local events and take photographs for the magazine:

"It's a fantastic feeling when each new edition is printed, and a huge thrill to see people reading our magazine," enthused Sean.

"But there's no time to rest - as soon as one edition rolls off the press, it's time to start planning the next!"

Since launching the magazine, the boys have also been rubbing shoulders with other successful entrepreneurs:

"Our next issue includes an interview with Kirsty Henshaw, who secured an investment of £65,000 from Peter Jones and Duncan Bannatyne in Dragons' Den, and also former Apprentice star Claire Young who presented Louis with an award at our school," says Sean proudly.

The energetic twosome both study business, media, photography and hospitality at Corby's Brooke Weston Academy. But how easy is it to juggle schoolwork with an entrepreneurial lifestyle?  And do the lads always hand in their homework on time? (Be honest fellas!):

"We manage, just!" says Sean. "It's not too bad as a lot of the magazine work ties in with the options we're on, so we're learning all of the time."

The magazine currently has a readership of around 5,000 - but the boys' vision is to have a copy delivered to all 25,000 homes in Corby:

"We currently distribute free to local businesses, doctors, dentists and hairdressers to keep the readership up and print costs down, but our ambition is to see the Corby Magazine in every home, every shop and every local business in the borough," says Louis.

"If we grow at the rate we are now, we're on target to achieve that by 2013."

Wayne Resnic of Lionheart Image Conscious Clothing was the Corby Magazine's first advertiser:

"These two lads are showing fantastic entrepreneurial spirit. The high level support they already have is a testament to their achievement.  Corby is very proud of them."

ENDS

For an interview with Louis and Sean, pictures or more information, please contact Ian McGregor 07941 036 285      .