Lats and Atts sunk?

kloudie1 · Jun 21, 2012

Bummer, Tim.. Sorry to hear..
Best to yall on the new plan..

Charisma · Jun 21, 2012

That is bad news for the sailing community

Rick486 · Jun 21, 2012

Sad but no real surprise. Printed magazines are dinosaurs and our terrible economy is just accelerating the process. And nobody wants to pay for content on the web so I just don't see right now what the future really is for "magazine" type platforms. I imagine they might need to go to a Google type business model where they offer content for free but pay for expenses with on line advertisers. I thought L & A actually had a web page where they were offering the current issue for free browsing? Just checked and not there anymore.
Related to this Warren Buffett just bought a bunch of print newspapers because he doesn't believe in free content on the web as a viable business model. I don't think he understands the platform.

Nodak7 · Jun 21, 2012

Sorry to hear this! I have enjoyed L&A's for a number of years! Good luck to the both of you! There goes my two year subscription.....:cry:

kpgraci · Jun 21, 2012

The secret to making money with a free product: volume.

Apparently zero dollars times millions of people adds up to big bucks. Google, Face book, Twitter. Sure, it's the advertisers, like free over-the air TV, then cable comes in and starts charging, well, I have to pay for my Internet (unlike my neighbor) but the content is paid for by advertisers. The alternative is government subsidized content and that of course is out of the question, but not outside of the realm of possibility.

The free market needs to sort this all out, and industries like this need to find a way or go by the wayside. Unfortunately.

Now sailors are a nostalgic bunch, I don't see why a print mag could not survive if marketed correctly, but it would be a challenge.

Don-MT · Jun 21, 2012

This should be the wake up call to all of us. If you value "sailboatowners.com" then you need to support it's chandlery and advertisers.

Shine On!
Don

Jim Seamans · Jun 21, 2012

I've bought so much stuff off of this site that Phil buys me a beer every 4 or 5 years...

Sad news on Lats & Atts, know Bob and Jody well. They may loose everything over this, but expect them to come back kicking....

Bill1565 · Jun 21, 2012

They may loose everything over this said:
Not if they got paid in January

gpd955 · Jun 21, 2012

If they got their payment when they sold the biz, they'll probably be OK. Lats and Atts was Bob's baby though and between that and the fact that their names are still one with the mag, I'm sure it's not a fun time for the both of them.

They'll bounce back and I am curious to see what they do with the website, boat shows and media. They're good people and I know those of us who are fans will give them full support!

I believe that Lost Soul was purchased by the mag under the new owners so who knows what will happen with her. I hope Bob and Jody get her back!

At least we still have Good Old Boat!!

UPSGUY · Jun 21, 2012

Good point Don! As for the loss of L&A it is a tragedy to the "regular guy" sailor.

xcyz · Jun 21, 2012

@ Don-MT
With all do respect, you're mixing apples with oranges. We don't know why the magazine failed but most likely due to low subscription or readers which are a direct relation to advertising revenue they must generate. The overhead for a magazine is many time that of web hosting environments. The key point is that a magazine is not interactive nor anywhere close to being able to deliver or exchange information in almost real-time. Being an exclusive dealer for Hunter Marine parts, Phil should be able to sleep at night..

thinwater · Jun 21, 2012

RGDavis said:
@ Don-MT
"The key point is that a magazine is not interactive nor anywhere close to being able to deliver or exchange information in almost real-time."

And so a magazine needs to use staff and writers to deliver quality that is unavailabe on common blogs, and depth in research and editorial oversight that a forum can't deliver. L&A was fun, but was never tightly written. Blog writers are limitied in scope and while a forum may be interactive, but it's up to the reader to judge if the writer has any actual knowledge of the subject. Forums can be a bedlem of "I know, I know" with little vetted information. But they are fun.

There will always be a place for responsible paid jurnalism, whether in print or e-subsription. Personally, I like paper in my hands sometimes.

Steve L22188 · Jun 21, 2012

Bad news

Really hate to hear this. The magazine was/is a bit loose - that looseness, goofiness and lack of pretension was really the personality of the brand. I enjoyed every issue.

I hope Bob got his money up front. But often these kind of deals are put together on some kind of buyout over time. Who knows how this was structured? Interesting that Bob seemed to make it work for years and the new owners seem to have hit a brick wall just 4-5 months in.

My background is in the advertising agency business. Do know that the unforgivable sin in the media world is to either fudge the circulation numbers or charge for ads that don't really run. Billing advertisers but not printing the publication is a problem on several fronts: legal and ethical. If the publication comes back, advertisers are going to be very leery...

It's a very tough time in the print media business. Warren Buffet is buying local newspapers on the theory that it's still the only/best place to get local news about your hometown. He's not touching the national media or big city papers where the net can deliver the content quicker and cheaper.

I now read most of my books on my iPad. But had an 8-hour airplane flight last Sunday and ended up with a real book, printed on real paper that didn't have to be turned off during take offs and landings -- and the "batteries" stayed fresh for the entire 8 hours. There's still something satisfying about having a physical book or newspaper in one's hands.

John Nantz · Jun 21, 2012

It'll be very hard to make a comeback

Not only because of the advertisers who prepaid, but also because of subscribers who prepaid. Maybe some retailers prepaid too as in paying for magazines but not getting a refund for the unsold issues. The publisher may have printed copies and never got paid.

If the new buyers had it set up as a corporation instead of a proprietorship it may be really difficult to go after the money they milked out of the deal.

What a mess. It'll be very hard to recover from such a default.

Rick486 · Jun 22, 2012

Steve Liggett said:
Really hate to hear this. The magazine was/is a bit loose - that looseness, goofiness and lack of pretension was really the personality of the brand. I enjoyed every issue.

I hope Bob got his money up front. But often these kind of deals are put together on some kind of buyout over time. Who knows how this was structured? Interesting that Bob seemed to make it work for years and the new owners seem to have hit a brick wall just 4-5 months in.

My background is in the advertising agency business. Do know that the unforgivable sin in the media world is to either fudge the circulation numbers or charge for ads that don't really run. Billing advertisers but not printing the publication is a problem on several fronts: legal and ethical. If the publication comes back, advertisers are going to be very leery...

It's a very tough time in the print media business. Warren Buffet is buying local newspapers on the theory that it's still the only/best place to get local news about your hometown. He's not touching the national media or big city papers where the net can deliver the content quicker and cheaper.

I now read most of my books on my iPad. But had an 8-hour airplane flight last Sunday and ended up with a real book, printed on real paper that didn't have to be turned off during take offs and landings -- and the "batteries" stayed fresh for the entire 8 hours. There's still something satisfying about having a physical book or newspaper in one's hands.

I agree with your sentiments on books. No kindle for me. I like the book in my hands. I suggest though that a book is a different platform than a magazine, which is essentially a medium for exposing advertising to consumers. A book is many things but not a medium for advertising. I believe physical books will always have a place in the market.

MrBee · Jun 22, 2012

I can't speak to this Magazine, it's one I don't subscribe to. But we have watched over the years many local small businesses go under shortly after being sold. One we know of it was the fault of the new owners and I bet they are still trying to figure out what happened. They came in and immediately made several changes that they thought would net them more money but it pissed off a whole lot of customers and we all went to another local business. Their doors were closed within 5 months .

Just a thought, what did they change and if the mag was successful when they bought it then why did they make any changes. IF thats what happened.

Just some armchair opinions

Brian

rgranger · Jun 22, 2012

I was reading the latest issue of L&A just last night. I had no idea the mag was in trouble. As far as print media goes.... I love it, I buy it every month and hope it stays alive. I have a subscription to SAIL (my least favorite of my sailing mags-- but it was an Xmas present) and each month I go to Barnes & Noble and get a copy of Small Craft Adviser, Good Old Boat and L & A. When I have only 10 min. between other dad duties, I grab one off of the end table and read a nice story.... I'm not that old and I am internet savvy so... I think the prediction that all print media is going the way of the dinosaur is premature.

But maybe that is just me... ?

Benny17441 · Jun 22, 2012

Got the same E-Mail; had no idea the business had been sold back in January. Not widely publicized. Let's see if they can work through their problems.

arf145 · Jun 22, 2012

It's not like good magazines can't make it--look at Good Old Boat. A great mag, and I believe they're going strong.