Covid affected almost every business on the planet in one way or another, but for Gourmet Traveller, the two things that they focus on most – restaurants and travel – were the first things to go out the window.
As the world has opened back up, the legacy title has bounced back.
Mediaweek spoke to Gourmet Traveller editor Joanna Hunkin about making a comeback after covid and what lies ahead.
“I used to call it the holy trifecta,” says Hunkin. “You’re already in publishing, and then you’re publishing a magazine about travel and restaurants. It was not a great time.”
Navigating closures and restrictions hasn’t been easy, and Hunkin says that for every success there was also something that didn’t quite go to plan.
“We ran the Restaurant Awards as planned in October, which was a really weird time for everyone because we were going to print when everyone was in lockdown and restaurants weren’t open.
“We worked with this blind faith that hopefully things would be better by that time – and they were! It was very serendipitous and through no skill whatsoever that the November issue which had the Restaurant Awards winners went on sale the day that Melbourne came out of lockdown.
“Arguably we’ve also had some terrible timing. Last year we brought out an issue with a big travel feature on Queenstown, and it came out on the day that New Zealand shut its borders to Australia. You win some you lose some!”
Thankfully, after a rough couple of years, Gourmet Traveller is on its way to coming back stronger than ever.
“We definitely started to see really strong signs of recovery last year, but it wasn’t really until the end of 2021 that we really realised just how well Gourmet Traveller had done throughout 2021,” says Hunkin.
“We significantly surpassed our targets, we returned a really strong EBITDA, and I think it took all of us a little bit by surprise.
“You don’t necessarily notice it day to day when you’re just trying to solve every headache, but when we reached the end of last year we realised what a fantastic position we were in. 2022 has just continued that momentum.”
In a first for Gourmet Traveller, the May issue has seen four restaurants create a custom paired playlist, which readers can access through a QR code. Hunkin says the multi-sensory experience came about after they noticed a growing trend.
“The whole issue explores different elements of culture. There are a lot of new venues that are really putting a lot of emphasis on music, and making it as much a feature of the dining experience as the food or the wine.
“One of our team members had the fantastic idea: instead of just talking about these places and sharing the recipes, why don’t we ask them to curate a playlist? So we did, and then we loaded that to Spotify and we created QR codes. Now when you get the issue you can pick your recipe, eat the food, listen to the music, and create a bit of that buzz for yourself at home.”
As more and more people plan to travel for the first time in a long time, Gourmet Traveller has seen an uptick in advertisers reaching out.
“We’re seeing a lot of interest from the travel sector, particularly cruising. A lot of luxury travel is very long lead, because people who are spending $30,000 on a trip are probably not going to do it two weeks beforehand.
“Now is the time that a lot of those clients are wanting to get in front of people and showcase their offering. Even if you have people that aren’t ready to travel this year, they’re probably thinking that next year could be the year to go.
2022 marks Gourmet Traveller’s 55th bday, and while a lot of the details are under wraps for now, Hunkin says that there are a lot of exciting things planned for the rest of the year.
“The big marquee event for us is the Restaurant Awards, and this year – all things going to plan – we will actually get to do the awards in person and we won’t have to reschedule five times over! That will happen in late September and we’re working on that at the moment.
“We’ve also got some exciting brand collaborations, we’re exploring a few opportunities around some branded products. There will also be celebratory releases, which is very exciting.
“We’re hoping to get some really cool things available for our readers and the general public to buy later this year.”