The Big Issue - Industry

Who publishes it, and what type of company are they? (PRODUCTION)

- The Big Issue LTD - an independent company (NOT a major conglomerate - SUBVERT ideology that media industries are dominated by a small number of large conglomerates)

What type of basis does TBI LTD operate on? (PRODUCTION)

They operate on a 'Not-for-profit' basis - any excess revenue after making costs back gets donated back into the community to aid the homeless (LINK TO Curran and Seaton - business intention is not always to maximise profits, as any extra they make is not reinvested back into the company)

What type of distribution model do they use? (DISTRIBUTION)

They use unique distribution model through the medium of street vendors, homeless people who are looking to maintain some form of income (a revolutionary distribution model)

How do the street vendors acquire these materials? (DISTRIBUTION)

Purchase the magazines for £1.50 and sell for double to make profit

How was TBI initially funded, who by? (FUNDING)

TBI secured a £50k grant from The Body Shop as a founder of TBI was married to an owner of The Body Shop which was used in order to allow prints to begin circulating and generating revenue in order to become a self-sustaining product

(LINK TO HESMONDHALGH - TBI TOOK A HUGE RISK AS OPPOSED TO TRYING TO MINIMISE IT)

What did they do in 1995? (DISTRIBUTION)

In 1995, they diversified into a series of other areas in order to ensure success, thus linking to Hesmondhalgh, as independent companies were seen to be able to diversify more due to having a concentrated ownership)

What were some of the areas they diversified into?

The Big Issue Foundation - a charity to help MH/DV sufferers

What types of applications do they accept in order to help secure funding, and where? (FUNDING)

They accept applications from the Vendor Support Fund in order to help sustain their vendors, and this is done from the 7 regional offices they have

What type of marketing approach did they adopt? (MARKETING)

A 360 degree marketing approach - you see it everywhere; buses, billboards, adverts

What other areas did TBI diversify into, and what does this help people do? (DISTRIBUTION)

They also diversified into the investment sector, 'The Big Issue Invest,' whereby they offer grants ranging from £20k-£3 - reinforces status as a star vehicle, helps those who need support to have the platform they need to get started

What do they include in the magazine in order to still ensure they can continue to generate profit? (FUNDING)

Include adverts for high-end brands, such as Warren Evans, aimed at an audience of a psychographic profile of succeeder and socioeconomic grading of A-C1 (have a more disposable income)

Link to Curran and Seaton - still a need to generate profit and maintain power

What techniques do they use in order to create further attraction? (MARKETING)

Use celebrities to guest edit/have limited editions for to provide a sense of exclusivity

What occurred due to changes in the magazine industry, and what changes did this prompt? (DISTRIBUTION)

Early 2000s = 300k/week, dropped to 125k/week - prompted a re-branding in 2011 and became more politically aware aswell as including more frequent celebrity columnists to ensure popularity - also increased price to £3 to make more from selling less

What other platforms did TBI diversify into due to technological advances? (DISTRIBUTION)

Became available to purchase online on the platform Zinio - purchase a one-off or subscribe for 12 months - aspect of technological convergence