LORD KILCLOONEYS appetite for the media industry spiralled from his college years when he worked voluntarily on the Gownnewspaper at Queen's University Belfast. When his local newspaper, the Ulster Gazettein Armagh City, came on the market in 1983 he was keen to get involved.
He bought it, and Alpha Newspaper Group was born. The success of the Ulster Gazetteencouraged him to consider further expansion within the newspaper industry and he subsequently acquired the Tyrone Courier.
Further acquisitions followed, including the Tyrone Constitution, Outlook Press, Midland Newspaper Group and the Northern Newspaper Group.
The group has grown from 20 staff employed for one local newspaper to its current size of 340 staff across 25 newspapers and contributes more than £5.5 million in wages and salaries to the economies throughout Ireland.
Lord Kilclooney considers that town centres create a community atmosphere and, hence it has established 28 offices across Ireland in local town centres.
Alpha recently branched out into the radio industry with an interest in all six commercial radio stations outside the greater Belfast area.
The group continues to look for opportunities to grow the business in a positive manner and to modernise and advance the titles that are within its ownership, while simultaneously providing employment in the local community.
Product/Service:
The product is simple - 150,000 newspapers each week providing news and information about local communities which can not be found in daily newspapers.
This service provides editorial coverage on matters affecting the community and benefits schools, churches, sports teams and other local organisations by promoting their activities.
Relevant editorial content has provided the basis for a strong tool in which advertising customers can reach the local community in a positive manner.
Customers:
Customers are either readers or advertisers of an Alpha newspaper. Readers of the newspaper are predominantly the general public.
However, the group caters for all types of advertising customers; whether Government departments and local authorities; private sector companies; or the general public.
Within the private sector the Alpha Group provides a service not only to local private companies such as motor companies and estate agents but also to leading international companies.
What vision prompted you to start up in business?
My late father was a founder of Creamline Products Litd, which became one of the main creameries in the North. Due to a serious illness I had to represent him at board meetings in my early 20s - I developed an enthusiasm for all company matters, including management, investment and development.
What is your biggest business achievement?
The acquisition of the Northern Newspaper Group against competition from larger British media groups and the successful purchase of four titles in the British midlands - the Midland Newspaper Group. These two acquisitions resulted in placing the Alpha Newspaper Group as the biggest weekly newspaper group across Northern Ireland and in the midlands.
What motivates you to succeed?
Certainly not money. I am motivated by building a successful company which is creating jobs for those locally. Some years I take no dividend at all - in some years my salary has been less than that of some of our editors!
My objective is to build a strong newspaper group in Ireland; locally-owned; making a profit; re-investing the profit to create more local jobs and to be stronger in order to compete with larger outside media groups.
