William Reed acquires Retail Week and World Retail Congress

The publisher already owns titles including The Grocer, British Baker and Beveragedaily.com.

By Bron Maher

B2B food and drink publisher William Reed has bought Retail Week and World Retail Congress from Ascential.

William Reed, which already owns titles including The Grocer, British Baker and Beveragedaily.com, said it had acquired the new publications “to complement its fast-growing business in digital content, insight, events and exhibitions”. The acquisitions will sit within William Reed’s Retail and Manufacturing business unit.

William Reed chief executive Charles Reed said: “Retail Week is a very strong well-established brand, with a combination of reader revenue, excellent events, and a marketing solutions business that overall delivers great value to the retail community. World Retail Congress has been shaping the future of retail since 2007 and complements our strategy of owning market leading global brands.”

Hanna Jackson, the managing director of Retail Week and World Retail Congress, said: “William Reed’s market and core customer groups are closely aligned to ours and with the retail industry facing unprecedented change, this combination of two great businesses and their respective services and capabilities represents a really positive move for the sector as a whole.

“Retail Week and World Retail Congress is a great business, and William Reed is the best environment to provide the support and focus that the business needs.”