The creation of a Texas business magazine

Scott Nishimura is executive editor of FW Inc., a business magazine launching in Fort Worth, Texas next week.

FW Inc. will publish quarterly for local entrepreneurs and C-level executives. Every issue will contain pieces from the area’s best and brightest executives, who unpack their professional journeys, sharing their stories and experiences; in-depth reporting on commercial real estate, finance, insurance, law and other general business topics. The magazine will also include lifestyle articles covering everything from sport and luxury cars to gadgets, dining out and travel.

Nishimura joined the magazine in May after spending two years with the Fort Worth Business Press, which recently launched its own business magazine.

Before that, Nishimura spent nearly 30 years at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, where he was a staff writer and the business editor.

Nishimura spoke with Talking Biz News about the launch of FW Inc. What follows is an edited transcript.

Why start a business magazine in the Fort Worth area?

Fort Worth is the 16th largest U.S. city and one of the fastest growing . Traditional print media here has steadily shrunk for years. Fort Worth, Texas Magazine, in business for more than 17 years, sees a significant opportunity here to fill a niche that’s never seen served in this market.

What is the strategy for FW Inc.?

FW Inc. will launch July 28 as a quarterly print publication and increase to a minimum six times a year in year two, based on advertising response. The magazine is highly targeted to business owners and C-level management, across a range of industries.

These people are responsible for their company’s purchases and its customers. They are well-educated and high-net worth, and they have disposable income, allowing them to indulge their passions for personal travel, luxury vehicles, higher education, fine jewelry, fine dining, and entertainment. We will mail each issue to C-level executives across industry in Greater Fort Worth, members of a prominent local community leadership development program, and to Fort Worth and Dallas members of the international Entrepreneurs’ Organization.

We will distribute courtesy copies to upscale hotels, conference centers, fixed-base operators and private hangars at corporate and general aviation airports, private clubs, and waiting rooms of law firms, high-end car dealerships and Realtors’ offices. We will sell FW Inc. at select newsstand locations and bookstores, where we already sell Fort Worth, Texas Magazine. We will also distribute FW Inc. throughout the year at events we sponsor.

How is this different from FWB CEO, the other business magazine in the market?

Both magazines are targeting to a similar reader. Articles in FW Inc. will be written exclusively for senior management. When we launched Fort Worth, Texas magazine in 1998 it redefined magazine publishing in the greater Fort Worth area and remains the market leader and the standard against which all others are judged. We are confident in our strategy with FW Inc. The quality of design and paper and print will be unrivaled.

What will the content be like for FW Inc.?

The heart of our editorial focus will be stories on the area’s best and brightest executives, who we will ask to unpack the stories of their professional journeys, the good, the bad and the ugly. We will provide in-depth reporting on general business topics like economic development, commercial real estate, banking and finance, energy, insurance and law.

We’ve struck partnerships with the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce and major local commercial real estate organization, which will each provide branded updates in every edition. Each edition of FW Inc. will include a colorful lifestyle section that covers everything from luxury cars to gadgets, dining out and travel. The magazine will be glossy and perfect-bound.

Will you also have daily content on a web site?

Yes, we will. We will be out in the community, aggressively looking to break news on our digital platforms, and we have already done so in the few months leading up to this publication’s launch. We’ll also do high-quality produced video interviews of several of our story subjects each edition, and we’ll display those on our site. The digital component will be a great bridge to our print product, helping us stay top-of-the-mind and develop better ideas for the magazine.

What business stories lend themselves best to long form or a magazine?

The magazine format gives us an opportunity to go in depth on everything from features about entrepreneurs, to stories about major local trends. At the same time, everything in the magazine must still be very timely and newsworthy.

What will your editorial staff look like?

I’m generating virtually all of the content in the first four issues. In year two and beyond we will add leading business freelance writers from the region. The photo and video staff of Fort Worth, Texas Magazine will provide that content for FW Inc. The Fort Worth, Texas Magazine design and production staff will produce FW Inc.

How does your experience in business journalism help you with this endeavor?

I’m a very unusual commodity for a reporter. I’ve worked as a journalist in the market for 30 years, at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and Fort Worth Business. I became a business journalist in 1990 and was a member of several SABEW-award-winning staffs as a reporter and editor at the Star-Telegram. I also covered Fort Worth City Hall for two years before coming to the magazine, with a heavy focus on economic development for half that time.

My wife and I volunteer extensively in the city, and we own a small real estate business here. All of this means I see things from a lot of different perspectives, and I add value to local journalistic products in ways that most journalists don’t.

Is there enough room in Fort Worth for two business magazines?

Frankly, we don’t know if the market will support, long-term, two high-end business magazines that are both advertising driven. We have had a remarkable start and have sold more than twice as much advertising as FWB CEO in the premier issue and have already sold significantly beyond our initial goals for the remaining three issue in year one.

How will you measure whether the magazine is a success?

Intangibly, we’ll know it’s a success if business executives reading FW Inc. are inspired, educated and entertained.

Additionally, we’ll measure success if we get feedback that our readers have improved the way they manage their operations, their employees, have become more profitable, or are just having more fun doing it. Tangibly, of course, we’ll be able to judge our success by the financial results. We think we’re going to be very successful.