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- OC&C conducted a review that lasted more than three months
London-listed publisher Future conducted a “strategic review” in late 2023 that led management to consider spinning off the company.
Global consultancy OC&C carried out a review that lasted more than three months and was completed in January 2024, a well-placed senior source told The Mail on Sunday.
Future, which is listed on the FTSE 250, publishes titles including Country Life, Homes and Gardens, Decanter, FourFourTwo and Marie Claire.
Royal connections: Queen Camilla has been featured in Country Life magazine
It also owns the insurance comparison website GoCompare.
At the time, CEO Jon Steinberg had been on the job for just over six months and was looking for a new strategy for the company amid a sharp decline in its stock price.
The future had prospered under the previous boss, Zillah Byng-Thorne, but had begun to stagnate.
Upon review, OC&C recommended that Future be split up and that Steinberg focus solely on growing the consumer magazine subscription business.
It was suggested that its business-to-business titles, including SmartBrief and GoCompare, be put up for sale as they were labeled “non-essential” to the rest of the organization.
Some titles like The Week were also flagged as possible sales.
Review: Future conducted a ‘strategic review’ in late 2023 that resulted in management considering a breakup of the company
The source said: “The review was taken seriously and the board explored the possibility of selling some businesses that were not aligned.” In the end it was decided to keep the company together and solve the problems internally.’
Under Byng-Thorne, the business grew rapidly from 2014 to 2023, acquiring titles and building a strong subscription model. “Zillah was great at keeping all the plates spinning,” the source added.
The share price during her period in charge gained a staggering 3,500 per cent and she was hailed for her ability to drag legacy media brands into the internet age.
The company benefited from the pandemic as readers flocked to its niche websites, helping it outperform its larger media peers.
Stock price of the future has languished since 2023 and on Friday closed down 0.1 per cent at £9.92, giving the company a market capitalization of £1.1 billion.
The former board member continued: “There were many shareholders who enjoyed the ride and made a lot of money, but there will also be those who still invested and are waiting for Future to improve.”
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