Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand. This week he talks to the editor of Homestyle magazine Alice Lines and chairman of the Magazine Publishers Association (MPA) Nicholas Burrowes.

With the abrupt shutdown of Bauer media’s New Zealand titles, we got a glimpse into the challenges of running magazines in this new media environment. Many commentators wondered if the foreign-based owners of Bauer used the crisis as an opportunity to bail out of a hard market. But whatever the reason, hundreds of jobs and many esteemed mastheads are no longer in operation and no longer contributing to and commenting on our culture.

So what does it take to run magazines locally? What is involved in creating something people love to spend time with? And what does the new business reality mean for the sustainability of the titles we love?

One local title that has grown over recent years is Homestyle, the magazine edited by Alice Lines and managed by her partner Nicholas Burrowes who is also chairman of the Magazine Publishers Association. Both joined the podcast this week to talk about their journey and the climate for magazines right now.

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