RE: Introducing Strada Magazine
Discussion
Apologies that it has taken a few days for me to post a response to the numerous comments relating to Strada subscriptions.
Hothouse Media is an independent publishing house that has no formal relationship with the publishers of Strada. But, on hearing the sad news of the demise of that title we reached out to Nathan and the publisher to see if we could help out. For a magazine that has just fallen over, to repay all of the subscribers their money is quite a financial burden We offered to fulfil the outstanding subscriptions with Magneto magazine. Magneto won't be for everyone but it is written by enthusiasts and celebrates the greatest cars in the world. You will probably know many of our regular writers David Lillywhite (Editorial Director), Andrew Frankel, Winston Goodfellow, Doug Nye, Andrew English etc. etc. We'd love you to try the magazine but if not refunds will be offered. Please give us a few days though - we are currently transferring the subscription database over to our subscription bureau and then we will be in a position to get in contact with regards to refunds, Thank you. Geoff Love - Publisher Magneto.
Hothouse Media is an independent publishing house that has no formal relationship with the publishers of Strada. But, on hearing the sad news of the demise of that title we reached out to Nathan and the publisher to see if we could help out. For a magazine that has just fallen over, to repay all of the subscribers their money is quite a financial burden We offered to fulfil the outstanding subscriptions with Magneto magazine. Magneto won't be for everyone but it is written by enthusiasts and celebrates the greatest cars in the world. You will probably know many of our regular writers David Lillywhite (Editorial Director), Andrew Frankel, Winston Goodfellow, Doug Nye, Andrew English etc. etc. We'd love you to try the magazine but if not refunds will be offered. Please give us a few days though - we are currently transferring the subscription database over to our subscription bureau and then we will be in a position to get in contact with regards to refunds, Thank you. Geoff Love - Publisher Magneto.
cerb4.5lee said:
CS Garth said:
Understandable but If everyone took that approach we wouldn’t see a new car mag again ever. Maybe we won’t, I hope not. I appreciate the principle here but in essence we backed a start up which didn’t succeed - it happens.
I should've known better after the experience with Modern Classics magazine going down the toilet to be fair. I usually learn from my mistakes but not in this case though. Print magazines are clearly on their backside and I do genuinely find that a real shame for sure. I've been a tech magazine publisher for nearly 30 years and had magazines succeed and fail. I like cars and magazines so subscribe to Evo, Road Rat, Magneto, and something I can't remember the name of that's really up itself. It's A5 with a three-letter name. I grew up reading CAR and have dipped in and out of Octane, I must resubscribe to Auto Italia even though I don't presently have an Italian car. I just joined the Alfa Owners club for the magazine.
This is context to say I really, really like Magneto. I prefer it to Octane and Road Rat. I consider EVO to be my stable source of information and Magneto to be an indulgence. No one who has been moved from Strada to Magneto should be disappointed. I had a subscription Strada and liked it, but when you subscribe to a magazine that is less than three issues old you have to accept that there is a good chance it will fail. Especially a quarterly.
Anyone here who gets on their high horse over lost subscription costs needs to get over themselves. No one folds a business for fun. They have put their heart and soul into it and when it doesn't work it feels like there has been a death in the family. People sniping over a few quid is the last thing they need.
This is context to say I really, really like Magneto. I prefer it to Octane and Road Rat. I consider EVO to be my stable source of information and Magneto to be an indulgence. No one who has been moved from Strada to Magneto should be disappointed. I had a subscription Strada and liked it, but when you subscribe to a magazine that is less than three issues old you have to accept that there is a good chance it will fail. Especially a quarterly.
Anyone here who gets on their high horse over lost subscription costs needs to get over themselves. No one folds a business for fun. They have put their heart and soul into it and when it doesn't work it feels like there has been a death in the family. People sniping over a few quid is the last thing they need.
simonrockman said:
when you subscribe to a magazine that is less than three issues old you have to accept that there is a good chance it will fail. Especially a quarterly.
This is true. I think most people aren't aware of the fact that by taking out a subscription, they're effectively making an unsecured loan to a small start-up, with the concomitant risk that the company may fail and not be able to fulfil the contract. Hence the unhappiness when it happens. But hey, most ppl are only upset the first time.simonrockman said:
Anyone here who gets on their high horse over lost subscription costs needs to get over themselves. No one folds a business for fun. They have put their heart and soul into it and when it doesn't work it feels like there has been a death in the family. People sniping over a few quid is the last thing they need.
I think if people approached 'subscribing to a new magazine' as 'making an unsecured loan to a startup', they'd find it easier to see it your way. But they don't see it as any different from subscribing to a big publisher.Incidentally, it doesn't appear anything has been folded exactly. If it had, then the subscribers would get a different email from "Eau Rouge Publishing (in administration) Ltd" informing them that they are low-priority creditors of a company that's folded with sod-all assets, and that if they write to the administrators at the address below, then in six months time the administrators will confirm what money they will get back (i.e. nothing). But this doesn't appear to be what's happened exactly.
stichill99 said:
Although when I took out strada sub I thought it was more man on the street motors I was a bit surprised with the content 550 marenello,alpina z1 .etc so I don't think magneto would be to much of a shock to the system going by the content of strada no.1.
You might find ‘ClassicRetroModern’ is more man in the street if that’s your leaning simonrockman said:
Anyone here who gets on their high horse over lost subscription costs needs to get over themselves. No one folds a business for fun. They have put their heart and soul into it and when it doesn't work it feels like there has been a death in the family. People sniping over a few quid is the last thing they need.
That's a bit harsh. I don't read anyone sounding like they are on a high horse or needing to get over themselves. I guess most folk will be disappointed on a number of levels one of which, certainly in my case, was a feeling of "investing" in a community thing, a PH Forum thing (not officially of course) but mentioned on PH, promoted by the editor on PH, positively received and discussed on PH and then discovering almost as a "by the way" from someone on PH who just happened to be more in the know than everyone else that, hey, that's all over now and someone will officially tell you about it later. Maybe. And by the way you're now a subscriber to a different magazine and maybe you've never even heard of it.I imagine the few quid is the last thing on anyone's list of gripes except, perhaps, anyone who signed up and paid money after the fact of it changing over.
By coincidence I got a free edition of Magneto this month as part of some promotion and was particularly interested because it had a feature article on the Lancia Stratos. It was a great feature but it's not really my type of magazine and it's not something that I would otherwise have subscribed to. However, if Magneto had been the subject of the Pistonheads forum chat rather than Strada, with the editor here on the Forum actively engaging about it, as with Strada, then I guess I would have joined in as well. I'll now happily let my subscription transfer over so as not to be part of bringing down anyone's business but think expressing a bit of disappointment in what's happened and how folk have been informed about it is fair game.
Gad-Westy said:
Anybody else just received a subscription and payment confirmation for Magneto? A bit peeved as the last communication I had was an acknowledgement that I had requested a refund for my Strada subscription and that they would confirm that in due course.
Exactly the same here - just got mail and had requested a refund. Just came on here to see if anyone else had. Email reply now being sent!Jules Sunley said:
Gad-Westy said:
Anybody else just received a subscription and payment confirmation for Magneto? A bit peeved as the last communication I had was an acknowledgement that I had requested a refund for my Strada subscription and that they would confirm that in due course.
Exactly the same here - just got mail and had requested a refund. Just came on here to see if anyone else had. Email reply now being sent!Gad-Westy said:
Jules Sunley said:
Gad-Westy said:
Anybody else just received a subscription and payment confirmation for Magneto? A bit peeved as the last communication I had was an acknowledgement that I had requested a refund for my Strada subscription and that they would confirm that in due course.
Exactly the same here - just got mail and had requested a refund. Just came on here to see if anyone else had. Email reply now being sent!ETA -just had a reply from Geoff saying this is not what e expected to happen and he is going to look into it.
Edited by Silenoz on Wednesday 14th July 13:41
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