£130m magazine distribution contract for Smith News
Magazine distributor Marketforce has agreed a five year contract renewal with Smiths News worth some £130 million a year.
Marketforce distributes a range of magazines including Private Eye, Hello! and The Beano.
It is part of TI Media and its portfolio accounts for some 38 per cent of the UK magazine market. As well as representing TI Media, Marketforce distributes on behalf of publishers such as DC Thomson and Future Publishing.
Together with other recently announced contract awards, Smiths News has now renewed agreements representing 98 per cent of its magazine sales and 65 per cent of total sales revenues.
The agreement will run from 2020 through to 2025. Smiths News chief Jos Opdeweegh said: “We are delighted to confirm this new agreement with Marketforce, which represents a milestone in our strategy to accelerate the renewal of our key contracts. We have now absolute clarity on the magazine footprint and I’m confident that our constructive discussions with the remaining publishers will soon ensure the same for the remaining newspaper contracts.”