Bonnier Corp. Buys Working Mother Media

Bonnier Corp., which bought a host of enthusiast and affinity magazines from Time Inc. last year, has made another acquisition: Working Mother Media. Bonnier says Working Mother magazine will be a good fit with Parenting and Babytalk, two of the 18 titles it absorbed in the Time Inc. deal.

(Is that would-be vice president Sarah Palin Bonnier CEO Terry Snow is alluding to in the press release? "You don't have to go very far to find current examples for working women who are also raising families," he says.)

Although small, Working Mother is one of the few business-oriented titles that's actually up in ad sales this year. Through June, it posted a 19.2 percent year-over-year increase in ad pages, with 270 total. It used to have a sister title, Working Woman, but that folded in 2001.

Here's the full announcement:

Bonnier Corp. Acquires Working Mother Media

Parenting and Babytalk Publisher Adds to Portfolio of Mom-Focused Media Assets

New York, N.Y. - Bonnier Corporation, publisher of Parenting and Babytalk, today announced the purchase of Working Mother Media Inc., the largest multimedia company in the country focused on the advancement of women and diversity, from MCG Capital and CEO and founder Carol Evans. Best known for its magazine Working Mother, the company also produces a highly publicized research initiative, the 100 Best Companies for working mothers.

Working Mother, published eight times a year, helps women balance their family, career and personal lives. The magazine works in tandem with the company's dynamic Conferences and Events division to provide support for Fortune 500 companies for the advancement of women in the work force. Working Mother Media's membership organization divisions include Diversity Best Practices and NAFE, the National Association for Female Executives.

"Bringing Working Mother into Bonnier's existing portfolio of magazines is a natural fit," says Terry Snow, CEO of Bonnier Corp. "We already have two of the nation's leading brands for moms in Parenting and Babytalk magazines, so the acquisition of Working Mother Media allows us to strengthen our foothold in the mom market and offer advertisers the most comprehensive variety of media platforms reaching mom consumers."

And the timing is right, Snow continues: "You don't have to go very far to find current examples for working women who are also raising families. From corporate executives to teachers to entrepreneurs, these readers are not only successful at home raising a family, but at the same time are balancing challenging and rewarding professional careers."

"Bonnier is the perfect home for Working Mother and our membership organizations. We look forward to building our products and fulfilling our mission as champions of cultural change with the support and strength of Bonnier. I could not be more thrilled," says Evans, who will remain with the company as president of Bonnier's Working Mother group.

The acquisition of Working Mother is Bonnier Corp.'s first since the company was formed last year. Sweden's Bonnier Group combined its U.S. magazine partner, World Publications, with its acquisition of 18 media properties from Time Inc.

Working Mother will remain located in New York with offices in Washington, D.C. The deal was brokered by AdMedia partners.

About Bonnier Corp.
Bonnier Corp. (www.bonniercorp.com) is one of the largest consumer-publishing groups in America and the leading media company serving passionate, highly engaged audiences through more than 40 special-interest magazines and related multimedia projects and events. Bonnier Corp. is the U.S. division of the Bonnier Group, (www.bonnier.com), a 200-year-old, family-owned media group based in Sweden with business operations in 25 countries, including magazine divisions in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Spain.

About Working Mother Media
Founded in 1979, Working Mother magazine reaches 2 million readers and is the only national magazine for career-committed mothers. Its 22-year signature research initiative, Working Mother 100 Best Companies, is the most important benchmark for work/life practices in corporate America. With offices in New York and Washington, D.C., Working Mother Media includes the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE), Diversity Best Practices, the WorkLife Congress, and the Multicultural Women's Conference and Town Halls. Upcoming major events are the 100 Best Companies & Work Life Congress gala in New York, Oct. 28 to 30, and the CEO Diversity Leadership summit in Washington, Nov. 11-13. Working Mother Media's mission is to champion cultural change. For more information, please visit www.workingmother.com.

• The Blues on Broadway
• The Culturati: What to Do in October
• The Unforgiven: Campaign Debts That Live On
• Wall Fall Down: Who Will Survive the Panic?

---