Blick Romandie Anniversary: Five Years of Digital Western Switzerland
On June 1, 2021, Blick Romandie went live—what began as a secret project codenamed «Baguette magique» grew, within five years, into one of the most influential digital voices in French-speaking Switzerland. Impressive user statistics attest to this milestone.
Blick Romandie Anniversary: From a Secret Project to a News Portal for French-Speaking Switzerland
The Blick Romandie anniversary marks a remarkable milestone in the Swiss media landscape: Five years ago, on June 1, 2021, the Lausanne editorial team published the first article on Blick.ch/fr at 8:30 a.m. What began as a secret project under the code name «Baguette magique» (Magic Wand), is now, by its own account, one of the most relevant voices in French-speaking Switzerland. The ambitious goal at the time was to create a purely digital medium that is firmly rooted in French-speaking Switzerland and its issues, while simultaneously carrying the Blick DNA across the Röstigraben into French-speaking Switzerland.
With its own app, numerous exclusive stories, steadily rising traffic, and now more than 120,000 published articles, Blick Romandie has since established itself. The latest usage figures released by Ringier underscore this success: The portal records 17 million page views per month, 183,000 daily visits to Blick.ch/fr, and 260,000 followers on social media.
An editorial team with an agile structure and a strong community
According to the announcement, the editorial team is adopting an agile structure that combines breaking news, in-depth reporting, and innovative social media formats—and actively engages the community. To mark the anniversary, a survey is being launched: Users can share what they’d like to see from Blick Romandie in the future and have the chance to win prizes.
Claude Ansermoz, Co-Director of RMS Romandie, describes the editorial approach as follows: «We strike the right chord with our community and regularly make a splash with major scoops. Our stories embody a passion for current events, journalistic courage, and a close connection to our audience. That’s classic Blick DNA, but not just a carbon copy of the German-speaking part of Switzerland—we tell stories from our very own perspective.»
Manon Bornand, Co-Director of RMS Romandie, highlights the brand’s development over the past five years: «We have built a strong brand, a respected editorial team, and a dedicated community. Our goal today is to continue growing without losing what defines our identity: our closeness to our audience, our speed, and our freedom of expression.»
Blick Romandie Anniversary Marks a Strategic Milestone for Ringier
Ladina Heimgartner, CEO of Ringier Media Switzerland, also places the anniversary within a broader strategic context. The launch of Blick Romandie five years ago was «also a bet on the future.» According to the press release, this bold move across the Röstigraben has paid off—both editorially and commercially—and opened up new opportunities and markets.
Blick is a Swiss media brand owned by Ringier that covers news, sports, celebrities, politics, business, and society. According to the company, more than 1.4 million people in German-speaking Switzerland and French-speaking Switzerland consume the brand’s content daily—via app, website, digital TV, newspaper, social media, podcasts, and newsletters.
