Mark My Words—Notes from UK Cabaret managing editor Mark RitchieThere comes a time in every new business venture when the time, effort and money put into a project starts to bear fruit.
It seems that many people within the light entertainment fraternity in this country are appreciating the improvements we are making to both the web-site and in particular the printed version of this publication.
Subscriptions are now coming in thick and fast and for this we are very grateful indeed. The web-site is going great guns and our investment in Google technology has been money well spent. Our web-designer Martin Brown is simply a genius and we owe much of our early success to his quiet, yet effective approach.
We will always be grateful to our first subscribers when we launched this publication last July. Their commitment, early encouragement and support ensured we at least had a crack at success. The monthly magazine that subscribers receive as part of their £25 annual subscription has been made a little thicker this month, with 20 all colour glossy pages chock-a-full of interest, in terms of editorial and advertorial content, for professionals within the entertainment industry. John Stokes does the business with our print design and John has helped develop and establish the brand with his expertise.
I have retained our growing subscription list in the order the first subscription orders came in to us. As this publication continues to grow in popularity and circulation, I can still look back with gratitude at the people who were the first to jump on board the good ship UK Cabaret.
Old and trusted friends have been enormously helpful and hopefully will continue their involvement. Contributors Roger Holmes and Austin Knight are staunch allies, while our cartoonist Keith McIntyre (AKA Keith Mac) has made a huge contribution with his talent and his pens.
Agents John Mills and Barrie Lucas were hugely encouraging right at the beginning of our publishing adventure. I am delighted to report that after just eight months of UK in circulation, we have now broken even in financial terms on our original investment.
All of this is gratifying, particularly after The Stage decided to end my time with them as regional representative after 16 years. This was a huge financial blow and when I announced I was launching this publication, The Stage publisher Hugh Comerford sent me a spiky, scornful and dismissive e-mail which stated: ’I can see no coherent market for your publication’. I wonder if Hugh has realised the extent of his error. At roughly the same time my long association with an east coast holiday centre was likewise ended and I was also suffering ill-health. Not so long ago, the whole situation seemed to be conspiring against success for UK Cabaret. At one point it seemed we would have to fold before we had even got going properly.
Now we have a new investor and I have taken a back seat on the financial front. I am now acting solely as content editor and advisor to the new publisher, who wishes to remain in the background.
We are now attracting many new subscribers and for that we are both grateful and happy. As UK Cabaret continues to grow, I will continue to look back at the first dozen or so names on our subscription list and regard such friends with great affection and sincere gratitude.
Now it seems the UK light entertainment scene has a media platform and a valuable promotional tool. Would you like to become part of this?
e-mail mark-ritchie@btconnect.com
