Summit Buys WiesnerMedia’s Financial Group

Deal marks Summit Business Media’s seventh acquisition in 20 months.

By Jason Fell
07/16/2008

Even in a shaky credit market, Summit Business Media continues its buying spree.

The b-to-b publisher today announced its acquisition of WiesnerMedia’s Denver-based Financial Group, which publishes Senior Market Advisor, Boomer Market Advisor, Benefits Selling and Bank Advisor magazines.

The deal marks Summit’s seventh acquisition since it was founded about 20 months ago, says president Andy Goodenough. “We think it’s a good time, opportunistically, to buy,” he tells FOLIO:. “These products are growing much more rapidly than your average bear in the marketplace. This acquisition is an exceptional fit for us.”

The acquisition was funded by capital from a refinancing Summit did before the credit crunch, Goodenough says.

In addition to the magazines, the transaction includes WiesnerMedia’s insurance agent site ProducersWEB.com; Advisors Data Source, a database with two million contacts; and the Benefits Selling Expo and Senior Market Advisor Expo events.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Annual revenues at the Financial Group are about $20 million, Goodenough says.

“This is a very logical and strategic acquisition for Summit that strengthens their core market positions in life insurance and investment advisory markets,” says Oakstreet Media CEO Tom Kemp. “One can assume that Summit is taking advantage of the challenging market conditions of the financial industry to strengthen their business at attractive valuations.”

Summit’s current portfolio includes 25 magazines, 150 reference books and electronic products, and 100 live events.