Octomedia’s retail news publication, Inside Retail, is launching a new website and premium content offering following an over 80 per cent increase in website visitors experienced during Australia’s first COVID-19 lockdown.
Published since 1972, Inside Retail is Octomedia’s flagship B2B title. It has online editions in Australia, Asia and New Zealand, along with quarterly print editions for Australia and Asia and a digital weekly subscriber-only e-newsletter for the Australian market.
Octomedia said that the new premium subscription service, Inside Retail Professional, is designed to help retailers navigate the challenges facing their businesses, as the entire industry faces unprecedented shifts in the way they work, sell, and market themselves in a pandemic.
Professional subscribers will have unlimited access to Inside Retail news, exclusive insights and opinion pieces, quarterly magazines from across APAC, and Inside Retail Weekly; alongside independent research reports, in-depth case studies, webinars with industry experts, and careers advice.
The website will feature all-new content, including regular video interviews with global brands. It will also allow subscribers to easily update content preferences, save must-read articles, enjoy an enhanced user experience, and act as a one-stop shop for accessing all digital magazines.
The premium subscription is available at two price points:
- $550 per annum or $48 per month, including all digital content and print magazine editions
- $365 per annum or $28 per month for digital-only package.
Inside Retail will continue to publish free news with non-paying subscribers continuing to have access to 15 free news articles per month. Non-subscribed readers will have a cap of five articles per month.
“Inside Retail has been at the forefront of everything retail and reporting industry news and views for nearly 50 years,” said Amie Larter, Octomedia General Manager.
“We’ve been planning the upgrade to our digital experience and premium offering for over 12 months, and we are happy to launch it at a time where we are seeing a higher demand for in-depth education and insights than ever before.”
Larter confirmed digital engagement peaked in March and April, driven by the need for information and advice on what coronavirus restrictions meant for retailers.
“Readers wanted to know how other businesses were responding to the pandemic, whether it be social distancing measures, store closures or the pivot to e-commerce and online,” she said.
“Inside Retail Professional adds a deeper level to that content and provides our readers with everything they need to get their business through the pandemic and out the other side.
Amie Larter, General Manager, Octomedia
“There’s no denying it’s a challenging time for the industry, but we’re committed to providing the very best resources to help retailers not only survive, but thrive.”
The platform will be supported by a restructured editorial team within Octomedia, with an entire team dedicated to premium content.
In Sydney, Jo-Anne Hui-Miller will take on the role of Managing Editor – Premium, taking responsibility for feature content, analysis and insights along with print and digital publications.
From Asia, Robert Stockdill will take on the role of Head of News and in Sydney, journalist Dean Blake will step up as Deputy News Editor within the News team.
Octomedia is a privately owned digital-first media company with offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Hong Kong.
In addition to Inside Retail, Octomedia also publishes Inside FMCG, Internet Retailing, Inside Franchise Business, Inside Small Business, The Australian Retail Chain Directory, Australian Retail Outlook, and a series of specialist annual titles in both print and digital format.
