News Limited has its eye on Queensland

As of 2 May, the Wednesday edition of both newspapers will come with the 32-page magazines cairns eye and townsville eye respectively. Printed on 52 gsm gloss, the magazines will have a print run of 32,000 copies and cover the latest in fashion, food, properties, travel and the arts. Distribution of the magazines will not be limited to newspapers, however. An additional 2000 copies will also be scattered throughout city hot spots such as cafes, dental surgeries and real estate agencies.

The growth and development in both towns has made each an ideal location for these type of magazines, said John Hartigan, chief executive officer of News Limited. “They are lucrative advertising markets with incomes of residents steadily climbing,” he said. “The eye magazines will give advertisers new opportunities in a high quality editorial environment to tailor campaigns that will compliment the strong focus on local stories, people, fashion, property, leisure and entertainment.”

Both Jason Scott, general manager of Townsville Bulletin and Nick Trompf, general manager of The Cairns Post agreed that there had been significant changes to the two demographics.

“In the past decade Townsville has been transformed from a working-class port town to a vibrant, cosmopolitan city,” Scott said.

Trompf added that: “We’ve got thousands of people moving here [Cairns] every year because we offer not only a great lifestyle but terrific business and family opportunities.”