Well, the new magazine (formerly Motoring & Leisure) has now been produced for a few months, so what do people think?
From what I have picked up, lovely pictures, nice layout, not much to read.
Where have all the well written, interesting articles gone?
There are currently 10 issues per year, but after a day or two, it has been read and is ready for the recycle bin.

Can anyone work out the strategy of the new management?

They are presently advertising for new staff (mainly in member services), but, they are also making several existing staff redundant! Work that one out if you can. Change for change's sake? Existing staff don't fit in with the new image? (This appears to be the case of the previous editorial staff.)

I was a member for a number of years, but after the re-introduction of the membership fees, I didn't think they had enough on offer to warrant it. The seem to want to target a younger readership, which again is strange as the majority of members are over 50, hence their major competitor, SAGA. (Check out the SAGA web site and see for yourself:- http://www.saga.co.uk)

The majority of the original services were all in-house with staff that knew their stuff.

Travel Shop - outsourced,
Car Shop - outsourced,
Britannia Rescue - sold,
Travel Insurance - outsourced,

As a note:- Car Insurance (LV/Frizzell) & Britannia Rescue, It may be worth having a look at www.NationWide.co.uk You can get the prices as good as csma but you don't pay the £15 membership in the price...
 

They organised their own events:- Brands Hatch Classic Festival, fantastic weekend attended by on average 50,000 people. The proms concerts, 4 to 8,000 attendees at each event. From what I can tell now they now 'piggyback' on to other events without actually organising their own.

Rumours from inside:-

The new high flying Events Manager has gone, haven't heard whether he jumped or was pushed, I think he had been there about 6 months. Good time to go in the middle of the main events season!

Recently heard too, they my be reducing the number of magazines to 4 per year (currently 10). This may be rumour, but probably not.

Allegedly there are going to be more redundancies. Which leads to the question, is the csma going to survive?

(Actually, there have been a number of redundancies in the past few weeks where the staff have now left.)

End of Rumours

Lets have your views in the forum....

In the past, press trips were paid for by the travel company advertising their product, which in general meant one member of staff with a notebook and camera. (on rare occasions a partner would attend). Now, it appears, two freelance journalists and a photographer is the way to go.

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