Investment firm Oreva Capital, led by entrepreneur Adam Levin, the publisher of High Times Magazine, recently announced their acquirement of Here Publishings. Here Pub is the most established, prestigious, and award-winning lifestyle media brands serving the LGBT market today.
That means Oreva Capital and an association of management from its various publications have acquired Out, The Advocate, Pride, Plus, Out Traveler, LGBT.com and a portfolio of intellectual property. Here properties has been rebranded as Pride Media Inc.
Pride Media will continue to reach of over 10 million people across its entire footprint. The print and tablet editions reach 2.4 million, and owned digital properties generate 5.2 million unique visitors, making it the single largest publisher serving the LGBT community, according to Comscore. That reach is amplified by a multi-platform social following at 2.4 million and growing.
According to a press release, the leaders of Here Publishing have taken an equity stake and will remain in their current roles for the foreseeable future. Management worked with Oreva Capital to secure controlling ownership. Lucas Grindley, the former managing editor for online at National Journal and 6-year Here Publishing veteran will continue to oversee operations of the company, the team of 56 capture 80% of the brand dollars in the burgeoning LGBT space, with an ever-deepening emotional connection to its consumer-base.
“There is no better bet in media or advertising these days than on passionate, connected communities,” said Levin. “We are excited and feel extremely honored to have the opportunity to work with brands such as The Advocate, Out and Pride and realize their next phase of growth,” said Levin, who will represent Oreva on the board of directors. Levin became the acting CEO of High Times magazine and the Cannabis Cup.
Over the first half of 2017, the brands have increased revenue by 17%, including a hugely successful Pride month in June, which increased revenue 86% compared to the same period last year. The brand is also further developing its video strategy, with 2017’s video advertising earnings already doubling that of last year. The brands are growing so rapidly, increasing traffic more than 20% over the past year, with larger audiences arriving to the properties each month than were amassed in the entirety of the previous year.
During the financial crisis of 2008, media producers and executives Stephen P. Jarchow and Paul Colichman opportunistically acquired many of the brands in which they were advertising to develop this media empire. Having been profitable for the past 6 years, the management team successfully navigated the transition from a collection of legacy print titles to 21st century digital brands.
