Endeavor Business Media recently announced plans to shut down LEDs Magazine, which has been one of the leading trade publications in the LED lighting industry. Carrie has been Editor in Chief for LEDs Magazine. I’m honored that she granted LightNOW this interview.
Shiller: Do you think the decision to end LEDs Magazine is a symptom of a contracting lighting industry, overall? The industry is approaching LED ubiquity (aka socket saturation), reduced replacement frequency, and disappearing energy ROI. Do you believe this stage of the LED lighting industry is causing a decline in advertising spends in the trade press, overall? If not, do you see signs of declining ad spends by the lighting industry, in the trade press?
Meadows: I think that the decision to close LEDs Magazine resulted from multiple factors. Yes, I agree that the maturation and adoption of LED technology in the lighting industry has played a role in the decline of advertising spend, so that’s one. I don’t want to blame the pandemic as a sole factor, either, but it also reduced spending as companies needed to carefully consider their budgets during a time of serious business and economic disruption. Since then, it’s my perception that target lighting customers have found other creative ways to increase their visibility beyond the trade media—one of which includes distributor and agency partnerships. Those services have more of a direct-to-buyer or –specifier relationship that we don’t have access to.
Shiller: Do you have any thoughts on the number of other trade pubs closing this year: Electrical News, LightED, LightSPEC Magazine?
Meadows: I prefer not to comment about magazines outside of my direct experience.
Shiller: Can you share a bit more about EBM’s thinking in closing LEDs Magazine, and EBM’s plans and directions, looking forward?
Meadows: I’d have to defer to our executive leadership on the thinking, but I can say this broadly: There is a cost/benefit analysis for every media brand throughout the company. Part of this is, of course, based on how much revenue the property brings in to cover its expenses. Audience growth is a large part of that equation as well. This is a long-view evaluation. If the projections for both audience and revenue growth are not lining up with group- and corporate-level goals, then tough decisions need to be made, such as reducing publication frequency, closing print editions and going digital only, or—after much consideration—sunsetting a brand.
If you’ve followed EBM’s corporate activities, you’ll already know that the company has expanded its market share in the Buildings & Construction group, with the recent acquisition of several construction-related brands and events from Scranton Gillette Communications. These brands have deep experience in serving the residential construction sector, which is something that the company’s legacy B&C brands were missing. My impression is that a 360-degree approach to covering building construction, facilities management, and design offers significant long-term growth potential.
Shiller: What are you doing next, personally, with EBM sister-publication i+s Magazine?
Meadows: I’m serving as Editor-in-Chief at i+s—also known as interiors + sources, for commercial and institutional interior designers. This role became available during the summer, not long after we were informed internally that LEDs Magazine would be closing by the end of 2024 and I was considering my options. My preference was to remain with Endeavor, and things aligned just at the right time!
The B&C team, especially the content director and editors at Architectural Products and BUILDINGS, has just been fantastic and welcoming. There is a great camaraderie and a lot of shared support and resources that LEDs was missing due to its niche in the company’s portfolio. We communicate frequently to strategize on content that’s appropriate from our different audience perspectives, and we balance those discussions with the sales team to make the most of our time and resources.
Shiller: Is i+s Magazine a good way for the spec lighting industry to reach specifiers, especially interior designers?
Meadows: Yes, it is. Commercial and institutional interior design professionals—who make up the bulk of the i+s audience—specialize in space planning and making fixtures, finishes, and equipment recommendations that protect building occupants and make the space accessible to all. Lighting is only one aspect of the interior design, but it is an important one, especially with more studies helping designers to refine their approaches for neurodiversity and even trauma-informed design. This is one area where the more controllable and more flexible the lighting options are, the better, so design professionals can meet the color temperature, visual comfort, dimmability, and task-specific needs that make sense in environments from healthcare and hospitality to education, offices, and more.
Shiller: Do you anticipate increasing lighting coverage by the three EBM sister-publications: Architectural Products, BUILDINGS, and EC&M?
Meadows: I can’t speak to whether there will be an increase in coverage, but these brands continue to look to their audiences’ needs to evolve content strategies alongside the market shifts. Architectural Products has a long history of lighting product coverage—that is your go-to for a perpetual buyer’s guide if you’re an architecture or design professional seeking new, novel, and aesthetic lighting solutions. BUILDINGS reaches professionals involved in development, construction, and management of commercial and public buildings; the lighting-related content will lean more toward smart systems integration, building networks, electrification, and controls systems. And EC&M brings lighting and controls issues into focus for electrical contractors and building electricians—helping them to stay up to date on electrical code, how to manage lighting needs along with other building electrical loads, and how energy distribution system changes impact their construction and maintenance activities.
Shiller: As you are moving to a more whole-buildings focus, any parting thoughts to share with the lighting industry on what you think the industry is doing well, and where it needs to improve?
Meadows: The lighting industry has made a big impact on energy usage while improving light quality since the earliest widely available LED offerings. So there are many high-performing products for consumers and professional customers to choose from. But as you mentioned earlier, LED lighting adoption is now a given. The energy efficiency story of the LED light source in combination with appropriate optics and thermal management has been established. More of the market needs to step up their circularity and sustainability efforts beyond lumens per watt claims. Companies that continue to make strides toward reducing content in the waste stream, offering takeback and/or refurbishment, and selecting suppliers that manage their carbon footprint will have a greater foothold in the market, in my opinion. Since beginning to work with i+s, I’ve learned that a lot of sustainability initiatives and certification efforts have been well received by other interior materials and FFE suppliers to the design community, and they look for continuous improvement. Sustainability is not an all or nothing situation. Businesses need to adapt their operations, service, and supply models to address environmental stewardship concerns—and that includes lighting manufacturers, distributors, and agents.
Shiller: Carrie, thank you for sharing your insights on the closure of LEDs Magazine, and especially for your decades of quality reporting on the lighting industry.
Image: Carrie Meadows, Editor in Chief, Endeavor Business Media
You must be logged in to post a comment.