‘Dublin Inquirer’ to launch print edition with vending boxes

They're a familiar sight in many US cities, but now the self-funded online title Dublin Inquirer is bringing coin-operated "newsboxes" to the capital as it launches a monthly print edition.

There will be five bright-red newspaper vending boxes in total around Dublin, and visitors to the Light House Cinema in Smithfield will be among the first to notice them when the print edition of the title comes out next month.

The team behind the Inquirer say they are doing things "a bit backwards". While most Irish publications are trying to figure out the transition from print to digital, theirs is a digital-native publication that is making a foray into print.

The paper is making a bet that there is still a market for what it calls "good, old-fashioned, original local journalism", with "a good, old-fashioned newspaper with longer, more in-depth articles".

The Inquirer was set up in June last year by its managing editor Lois Kapila, who opted to fund the venture through borrowing and personal savings after gaining inspiration from her experience of the metropolitan newspaper market in Washington DC.

Kapila, from Peterborough in England, says the Inquirer has a small amount of money coming in from online memberships and advertising, but that an attempt at Dublin-focused e-commerce through the site didn't work out, so it is looking for a new revenue stream in order to sustain itself.

The website, which has about 60,000 monthly readers, is a weekly publication staffed by Kapila, deputy editor Sam Tranum (Kapila’s husband), two reporters and an advertising sales and e-commerce manager, while a number of freelancers and columnists also contribute.

Loyal readers

“We’re small compared to a lot of publications, but what we want is core, loyal readers who feel involved in what we do,” says Kapila. She cites data journalism and articles written in response to reader questions – submitted through an online form – as its most popular content to date.

She is pleased with the reception the title has got so far, but is now trying to build up a subscriber base to an initial target of 800 to help it survive. “We need to get a certain amount to keep going.”

A subscription to the home-delivered print edition costs €5 a month. A €10 membership option includes a tote bag, while “patrons” can also sign up for €20 a month.

According to the pitch on the website: “Whatever level you choose, you’ll also get our eternal gratitude and the satisfaction of knowing that you’re helping to support local, independent journalism.”