LADbible has teased details of a local content initiative and strategic partners as it refutes claims that it will close the Australian business at the end of the year.
In a statement to Mediaweek, a LADbible spokesperson said, “We are planning a new initiative, indicative of our commitment to the region, working with Australian-based creators and commissioning them to create bespoke content for our brands.”
The statement revealed the youth publisher was restructuring the Australian business with 52 people at risk of redundancy and that they are currently in a period of consultation with those affected, further stating, “The ambition is for around a third of these individuals to be part of the strategic partnership we are exploring in market and so it is hoped therefore that the actual number of redundancies will be far fewer than the ‘at risk’ headcount.”
The statement followed a now amended article on News.com.au, originally reporting that “LADbible will shut down its Aussie business at the end of the year, making at least 100 employees redundant.”
LADbible said, “We intend to centralise our editorial and social content to our industry leading teams in the UK and we are in discussions with a number of strategic partners to continue our commercial business in Australia.
“We are confident that this operating model, in place for the new year, will further grow our audience across our APAC brands and continue to deliver the high-quality content we are known for.”
LADBible has reinforced the profitability as a business in Australia and New Zealand, pointing to their audited results on the LBG website. The spokesperson commented, “We reach over five million people a month across social in Australia and New Zealand and we remain committed to delivering quality content for this audience, and our partners.
“We are not closing, the business will continue but with an optimised operating model.”
LADbible said they will be in touch to share more on their moves “in due course”.
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