"We won't look at Ticino until after the break-even at the earliest".
Rolf Bollmann, CEO of 20 Minuten, on the free newspaper project Quotidiano Indipendente
20-Minuten boss Rolf Bollmann on the free newspaper project Quotidiano Indipendente "We won't look at Ticino until after the break-even point at the earliest"
By Markus Knöpfli
A largely anonymous group of investors, allegedly from Switzerland, wants to launch a free newspaper à la 20 Minuten in Ticino. A company called Quotidiano Indipendente SA was founded in July. WerbeWoche asked Rolf Bollmann, Managing Director of 20 Minuten Schweiz, what he thinks of the new project.
Mr. Bollmann, are 20 Minuten Switzerland or its parent company Schibsted also among the investors in Quotidiano Indipendente?
Rolf Bollmann: Most certainly not. I'm not a member of the Board of Directors, but as Managing Director of 20 Minuten Schweiz I would certainly know.
Were 20 Minuten Schweiz or Schibsted also not approached as investors?
Bollmann: Not to my knowledge.
Are you annoyed that someone in Ticino is apparently beating you to it?
Bollmann: No. We are in the consolidation phase and have never thought about Ticino before.
Although you could also do something beyond the national border there?
Bollmann: Possibly. We have not evaluated this market. The 20-Minuten-Holding was different: it had a project in Milan in mind for a long time, but then dropped it due to political and trade union blockades. If the Milan project had been realized, a Ticino project might also have made sense for us. But as Ticino alone represents the smallest market of all the Swiss language regions, we won't be looking at it until after the 20 Minuten Zurich-Bern-Basel break-even point at the earliest.
What about the break-even point originally estimated for the end of 2002?
Bollmann: We have had to postpone the break-even point to the end of 2003. If even highly paid economic research gurus are repeatedly wrong with their forecasts, I also have the right to adjust my forecasts to the poor economic situation. And it is understandable that we are not exactly on track with our business plan at the moment. After all, we are also suffering from the poor advertising environment, with page volumes falling by 4 percent in the first seven months. There was even a 59.8 percent drop in the volume of classified ads (especially jobs), but we almost made up for this by increasing the volume of commercial ads. What is decisive, however, is what happens in terms of value. In contrast to the major daily newspapers, which have lost around 20 to 30 percent in terms of value, 20 Minuten Schweiz achieved an increase in advertising sales of 12 percent in the first seven months of this year, although a higher increase had been budgeted.
Back to the Ticino project, of which the following key figures are known: A share capital of three million francs, launch on September 2 with 36 pages, printing in Milan, distribution box system, possibly Lega National Councillor Flavio Maspoli as editor-in-chief. How do you rate the project?
Bollmann: It's difficult to say, as we don't even know the circulation, publication frequency and distribution area. But I can't imagine that you can establish such a product with three million francs. The big cost blocks are printing and paper, then distribution and finally personnel and marketing. For us, these each account for almost a third. There is also the question of whether Quotidiano will set up its boxes in the city or conclude a contract with the SBB, which would be more expensive. If something similar to 20 Minuten is actually created, I wonder whether there is enough potential for young readers. There are certainly tourists, but they are of no use because they are not included in the readership figures.
Can you imagine working with Quotidiano Indipendente one day, for example in the advertising market?
Bollmann: Absolutely, assuming that Quotidiano will be on the same editorial level as us. It would also have to fit in with us in terms of target group strategy, architecture and publication style. However, if it were to drift in the direction of a free newspaper, a cooperation would be out of the question for me.
Will 20 Minuten Switzerland take part in the Quotidiano?
Bollmann: You'll have to ask my Board of Directors. Consolidation in the Golden Triangle really is my top priority now.
So far we have been talking about Ticino, but 20 minutes in western Switzerland would be closer. When is the time there?
Bollmann: Of course, these ideas come up again and again, and we are occasionally approached by advertising clients. The region would be more interesting than Ticino simply because of the size of the market. Cooperation in the advertising market would be possible, which is why we have already held talks with Le Matin. But these have been frozen. That's probably because Edipresse and Publicitas Léman still don't really understand 20 Minuten. However, I am convinced that 20 Minuten and Le Matin would be a good fit in terms of readership structure and format.
Who is behind the Quotidiano?
By Markus Knöpfli
A largely anonymous group of investors, allegedly from Switzerland, wants to launch a free newspaper à la 20 Minuten in Ticino. A company called Quotidiano Indipendente SA was founded in July. WerbeWoche asked Rolf Bollmann, Managing Director of 20 Minuten Schweiz, what he thinks of the new project.
Mr. Bollmann, are 20 Minuten Switzerland or its parent company Schibsted also among the investors in Quotidiano Indipendente?
Rolf Bollmann: Most certainly not. I'm not a member of the Board of Directors, but as Managing Director of 20 Minuten Schweiz I would certainly know.
Were 20 Minuten Schweiz or Schibsted also not approached as investors?
Bollmann: Not to my knowledge.
Are you annoyed that someone in Ticino is apparently beating you to it?
Bollmann: No. We are in the consolidation phase and have never thought about Ticino before.
Although you could also do something beyond the national border there?
Bollmann: Possibly. We have not evaluated this market. The 20-Minuten-Holding was different: it had a project in Milan in mind for a long time, but then dropped it due to political and trade union blockades. If the Milan project had been realized, a Ticino project might also have made sense for us. But as Ticino alone represents the smallest market of all the Swiss language regions, we won't be looking at it until after the 20 Minuten Zurich-Bern-Basel break-even point at the earliest.
What about the break-even point originally estimated for the end of 2002?
Bollmann: We have had to postpone the break-even point to the end of 2003. If even highly paid economic research gurus are repeatedly wrong with their forecasts, I also have the right to adjust my forecasts to the poor economic situation. And it is understandable that we are not exactly on track with our business plan at the moment. After all, we are also suffering from the poor advertising environment, with page volumes falling by 4 percent in the first seven months. There was even a 59.8 percent drop in the volume of classified ads (especially jobs), but we almost made up for this by increasing the volume of commercial ads. What is decisive, however, is what happens in terms of value. In contrast to the major daily newspapers, which have lost around 20 to 30 percent in terms of value, 20 Minuten Schweiz achieved an increase in advertising sales of 12 percent in the first seven months of this year, although a higher increase had been budgeted.
Back to the Ticino project, of which the following key figures are known: A share capital of three million francs, launch on September 2 with 36 pages, printing in Milan, distribution box system, possibly Lega National Councillor Flavio Maspoli as editor-in-chief. How do you rate the project?
Bollmann: It's difficult to say, as we don't even know the circulation, publication frequency and distribution area. But I can't imagine that you can establish such a product with three million francs. The big cost blocks are printing and paper, then distribution and finally personnel and marketing. For us, these each account for almost a third. There is also the question of whether Quotidiano will set up its boxes in the city or conclude a contract with the SBB, which would be more expensive. If something similar to 20 Minuten is actually created, I wonder whether there is enough potential for young readers. There are certainly tourists, but they are of no use because they are not included in the readership figures.
Can you imagine working with Quotidiano Indipendente one day, for example in the advertising market?
Bollmann: Absolutely, assuming that Quotidiano will be on the same editorial level as us. It would also have to fit in with us in terms of target group strategy, architecture and publication style. However, if it were to drift in the direction of a free newspaper, a cooperation would be out of the question for me.
Will 20 Minuten Switzerland take part in the Quotidiano?
Bollmann: You'll have to ask my Board of Directors. Consolidation in the Golden Triangle really is my top priority now.
So far we have been talking about Ticino, but 20 minutes in western Switzerland would be closer. When is the time there?
Bollmann: Of course, these ideas come up again and again, and we are occasionally approached by advertising clients. The region would be more interesting than Ticino simply because of the size of the market. Cooperation in the advertising market would be possible, which is why we have already held talks with Le Matin. But these have been frozen. That's probably because Edipresse and Publicitas Léman still don't really understand 20 Minuten. However, I am convinced that 20 Minuten and Le Matin would be a good fit in terms of readership structure and format.
Who is behind the Quotidiano?
Quotidiano Indipendente SA (QI) was founded on July 18, 2002. The only member of the QI Board of Directors (BoD) is Carlo Riva, who, according to Ticino newspapers, does not wish to disclose the identity of the investors. A company spokesperson denied to SDA that the German company Thermoselect SA, which builds waste incineration plants, could be one of them. However, QI works in a Thermoselect building and Carlo Riva is also a member of the Thermoselect board of directors. However, he could not be reached by WerbeWoche before the editorial deadline.
