Universal Media Co

What Universal Media Co does

Universal Media Co (formerly Universal Magazines) is a privately held Australian multi-channel media company founded in 1985 and headquartered in North Ryde, Sydney. The company publishes more than 50 magazine brands across niche consumer verticals including home renovation and design (Grand Designs Australia, Kitchens & Bathrooms Quarterly, Home Design, CompleteHome), health and wellness (WellBeing, Eat Well), regional lifestyle (Australian Country), craft (Homespun), and motorcycling, alongside the WF-Media B2B portfolio acquired in 2015 covering food, healthcare, science, and technology sectors. Its core technology platform is a proprietary 'People with Projects' audience capture system that acquires opt-in data on consumers in the pre-purchase research phase of home renovation projects and nurtures them through a 24-month journey, activating an average of 2.2 media products per record.

The company operates a diversified revenue model spanning print and digital magazine subscriptions, advertising sales across its owned titles, custom publishing services for third-party brands, licensed stationery products (300+ SKUs in Coles, Woolworths, and Big W under NRL, Socceroos, Cricket Australia, and entertainment brand licenses), direct-to-consumer e-commerce via UniversalShop.com.au, international brand licensing, and TV content partnerships (Eat Well TV on Channel 9; Grand Designs TV now broadcast on ABC free-to-air). Distribution extends across 3,500+ newsagencies, supermarket chains, airports, Amazon, eBay, and proprietary digital platforms, delivering 18M+ monthly touchpoints across Australia and New Zealand.

Go-to-market combines a state-based direct sales force (NSW, VIC/SA, QLD, WA) targeting marketers and media agencies with event-driven activation through awards programs (Grand Designs House of the Year, Husqvarna Champion of Champions) and a direct-to-consumer subscription model. Customer segments span enterprise advertisers (Bosch, SMEG, Caesarstone, Harvey Norman), mid-market professionals, and SMBs across at least nine verticals, with third-party validated readership from Roy Morgan and IPSOS EMMA supporting advertiser value propositions.

Name

Universal Media Co

Legal name

Universal Magazines Pty Ltd

Website

https://umco.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Universal Media Co is an Australian privately held multi-channel media company publishing 50+ magazine brands across home renovation, wellness, food, and lifestyle verticals, serving consumer and B2B advertisers through proprietary audience data, print, digital, social, events, licensing, and e-commerce revenue streams across Australia and New Zealand.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Media and Advertising Services

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418), Broadcasting and Content Providers (516)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Home, Garden & DIY Magazines (MPAJAEAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Health, Fitness & Wellness Magazines (MPAJAEAD), Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) Sales & Merchandising (Publisher Stores, Bundles) (MPAJAKAD), Sports & Recreation Magazines (MPAJAEAJ), Food, Cooking & Beverage Magazines (MPAJAEAF)

Keywords

• Specialty magazine publishing
• Digital advertising services
• Custom content publishing
• Brand licensing
• Audience targeting solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Ryde

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Magazine and Print Publishing: Revenue from selling print and digital magazine editions, subscriptions, and single copy sales through newsagencies, supermarkets, airports, and direct channels. Started with 6 titles in 1985 and grew to publish more than 50 individual magazine brands.
2. Advertising and Brand Marketing: Advertising sales across print magazines, digital platforms, social media, inbox media, and custom publishing. Marketers pay for brand ads, content marketing, and boosted social posts to reach target audiences of people with active projects.
3. Licensing and Ventures: Licensing of media brands internationally, joint ventures and technology investments through the Ventures division, and licensing of branded stationery products under brands including NRL, Socceroos, Cricket Australia, Wallabies, The Wiggles, Ben 10, The Powerpuff Girls.
4. Stationery Products: Sale of licensed and branded calendars, diaries, planners, and stationery products through major Australian retailers including Woolworths, Coles, and Big W. Over 300 individually branded products.
5. Custom Publishing: Creation of custom magazines for brands, providing editors, writers, designers, photographers, and print/distribution relationships for third-party brand publications.
6. Digital Services and E-commerce: Revenue from WellBeing Grow (corporate wellness), WellBeing Shop (ecommerce), Cosy Project, BeBox subscription services, and general ecommerce via UniversalShop.com.au.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Universal Media Co is a privately held, independently owned Australian media company that publishes more than 50 consumer and B2B magazine brands across home renovation, wellness, food, craft, motorcycling, regional lifestyle, and B2B verticals. The company sells advertising, custom publishing, design, digital, social, and email marketing services to brand marketers and agencies, complemented by consumer magazine subscriptions, licensed stationery products, and an e-commerce platform (UniversalShop.com.au).

Product overview

Universal Media Co is a portfolio-based media company operating across multiple niche consumer and B2B markets including home renovation, wellness, craft, pets, motors, and regional lifestyle. The core offering consists of over 50 magazine brands (print and digital) spanning WellBeing, Grand Designs Australia, Home Design, Kitchens & Bathrooms Quarterly, Eat Well, Australian Country, and Homespun, alongside digital platforms (CompleteHome.com.au, outdoordesign.com.au, specifiersource.com.au, universalshop.com.au). Services include custom publishing, design services, digital/social/email marketing, and content marketing. The company also operates WF-Media (B2B publishing) and a stationery division with licensed products. The portfolio targets consumers with specific project intentions (renovators, wellness seekers) and B2B professionals, with monthly reach exceeding 18 million touchpoints across Australia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• WellBeing Media Group: Health and wellness media group including WellBeing magazine, EatWell, and WellBeing.com.au
• Universal Home Group
• Australian Country Media Group
• Outdoor Design Source (ODS)
• Specifier Source
• Universal Momentum
• WF Media

Products and services

• Grand Designs Australia Magazine Official publication of the Grand Designs Australia TV show, targeting upmarket consumers building quality home projects. Features designer homes, floor plans, lookbook guides, designers, contacts and signature products. Reaches 176,000 readers (Roy Morgan).
• Kitchens & Bathrooms Quarterly Market-leading print and digital magazine showcasing kitchen and bathroom design and products in Australia and New Zealand, targeting consumers engaged in pre-purchase research for impending kitchen and bathroom projects. Reaches 221,000 readers every 12 weeks (IPSOS EMMA).
• WellBeing Magazine Beacon brand for natural living in Australia, offering science-based health reportage targeting influencers in the natural living community. Reaches 293,000 readers (Roy Morgan).
• Eat Well Magazine Healthy recipe magazine for home cooks transitioning to a healthier way with food, featuring more than 70 recipes per edition. Reaches 168,000 readers (Roy Morgan).
• Australian Country Magazine Regional lifestyle publication covering home, travel and lifestyle inspiration for successful regional families and those aspiring to join them. Reaches 121,000 readers (Roy Morgan).
• Complete Home Australia's Do-It-For-Me home portal providing comprehensive home improvement content covering architecture, building, kitchens, bathrooms, cabinetry, fittings, outdoors, furniture, landscaping and pools. Delivers 5.9 million touchpoints per month.
• Eat Well TV TV recipe series developed with former MasterChef winner Emma Dean, featuring delicious and healthy recipes with brand partnerships, broadcast on Channel 9.
• Specifier Source Visual reference network for architects, project managers, specifiers and designers of mixed-use residential projects, connecting professionals with products and services.
• ODS Exemplary Projects Industry portfolio demonstrating excellence of civil and commercial landscape projects, delivered to external works specifiers, landscape architects, designers and contractors.
• Homespun Magazine Premier quilting, applique and stitching magazine featuring projects by passionate artisans and designers, including patchwork, embroidery, crochet, knitting and toy making.
• Custom Publishing Services End-to-end custom magazine creation service using in-house editors, writers, designers, photographers, and existing print and distribution relationships to produce branded magazines for client companies.
• Design Services (UMCo Design Studio) Award-winning design and development services including graphic design, copywriting, photography and videography, delivered to external clients by the in-house UMCo Design Studio.
• Digital Advertising Services Digital media advertising services targeting audiences based on their research phase and purchase intentions across Universal Media Co's owned digital properties.
• Content Marketing Services Content creation services using in-house editors, photographers, designers and contributors to produce content for digital platforms, social media and print.
• Social Marketing Services Social media marketing services using enterprise-level tools to target actively researching audiences across multiple social platforms, with tailored content per platform and engagement metrics reporting.
• Email Marketing Services Targeted e-newsletter database and program services, delivering content to readers' inboxes weekly across Universal Media Co brands and to advertiser audiences.
• Owned Media Content Services Content strategy and solutions services for brands seeking to develop their own content, offered by Universal Media Co's content marketing team.
• WF-Media B2B Media Services B2B communications services including database, news, case-study, white-paper and creative services targeting professionals with specific job titles across food, hospital, healthcare, science, bio-tech, technology and sustainability sectors, delivered through five B2B media brands.
• UniversalShop.com.au Proprietary e-commerce platform selling magazine subscriptions, single issues, calendars, diaries, planners, and Universal Media Co branded products directly to consumers.
• Licensed Stationery Products Licensed and branded calendars, diaries, planners, and stationery products sold through major Australian retailers including Woolworths, Coles, and Big W, covering sporting codes (NRL, Socceroos, Cricket Australia, Wallabies) and kids entertainment brands (The Wiggles, Ben 10, The Powerpuff Girls). Over 300 products.

Quantifiable outcome

• 221,000 readers every 12 weeks for Kitchens & Bathrooms Quarterly (IPSOS EMMA)
• +8 more outcomes

Named customers26 records

Segments9 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• HusqvarnaflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerHusqvarna is the Naming Partner for the Champion of Champions: Australian Landscaper of the Year awards. As the world's largest producer of outdoor power equipment, Husqvarna's partnership lends credibility and industry authority to the awards programme for landscape professionals.
• DECO AustraliacoreGTM or Marketing PartnerDECO Australia is the Presenting Partner for the Husqvarna Champion of Champions awards. DECO specialises in aluminium building products including DecoClad, DecoBatten, DecoSlat and DecoDeck, with a leading timber grain powdercoating finish called DecoWood.
• GrillexminorGTM or Marketing PartnerGrillex is the Trade Partner for the Champion of Champions awards. Australia's leading provider of commercial electric barbecues, street and park furniture for local governments, education providers, tourist parks, builders and architects.
• Australian Landscape Industry AssociationsflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerState landscape association winners automatically qualify for the CoC awards, with judging by industry and association professionals from across the nation. Full support of Australia's landscape associations since the awards' launch in 2021.
• SpecifierSourcecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerMedia partner for the Champion of Champions awards, providing multimedia showcase to lift winners' profiles. ODS is a media brand connecting creators to clients and suppliers to projects in the external works industry.
• Outdoor Design SourcecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerODS media brand for external works community is a media partner for the awards, connecting landscape professionals with clients through web, inbox media, social media, print sourcebook and Exemplary Projects Showcase.
• CompleteHomecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCompleteHome is a media partner for the Champion of Champions awards, showcasing landscape projects to Australia's largest 'Do-It-For-Me' home portal audience.
• Grand Designs AustraliacoreGTM or Marketing PartnerGrand Designs Australia magazine is a media partner for the CoC awards, showcasing landscape projects to its audience of people with home build and renovation projects.
• KBDI (Kitchen & Bathroom Design Institute)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2015, Kitchens & Bathrooms Quarterly partnered with KBDI to survey consumers in the kitchen and bathroom market, producing the Kitchens & Bathrooms Consumer Report. This partnership established market research credentials and content for the media group.
• Cosh LivingcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerGold Sponsor for the Grand Designs Australia Magazine House of the Year Awards 2022/23. Cosh Living designs and manufactures furniture in Australia and represents leading international brands, partnering with the architectural profession.
• Rylock Windows & DoorscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerSilver Sponsor for the Grand Designs Australia Magazine House of the Year Awards 2022/23. Australian-made innovative leader in high-performance window and door systems with energy efficiency specialty.
• GoodWe AustraliaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerTrade Partner for Grand Designs Australia Magazine House of the Year Awards, donating a Solar Energy Storage System as prize for the awards activation that reached over 2.7 million touchpoints.
• WF-Media (formerly Westwick-Farrow)coreOthersWF-Media is an associate company of Universal Media Co. It operates B2B media brands across food, hospital, healthcare, science, bio-tech, technology, sustainability and other industry markets. A separate legal entity with over 40 years of B2B media experience.
• Emma DeancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormer MasterChef winner and Australia's TV food sweetheart, Emma Dean partnered with Eat Well Magazine to create a bespoke recipe series for Eat Well TV. Episodes are produced and broadcast on Channel 9, showcasing sponsor brands in a multi-channel content format.
• ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)flagshipChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorABC is the free-to-air broadcaster for Grand Designs Australia TV, having acquired the show from Foxtel in 2023. Also hosts Grand Designs Transformations. The magazine leverages TV airtime for print readership acquisition.
• 9 NetworkcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEat Well TV is broadcast on the 9 Network, growing every year for 5 years. Also broadcast Emma Dean's Christmas special. Multi-platform content distribution for food and wellness content.
• Channel 9 (for Eat Well TV)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorChannel 9 broadcasts Eat Well TV content produced by Universal Media Co, including Emma Dean's recipe series, growing TV audience every year for 5 years.
• IPSOS EMMAminorOthersIndependent readership measurement provider. Surveys over 40,000 Australians per year and updates data monthly for Kitchens & Bathrooms Quarterly readership figures.
• Roy Morgan ResearchminorOthersIndependent research firm providing readership and cross-platform audience measurement for Universal Media Co publications including WellBeing, Eat Well, Grand Designs Australia, Home Design, and Australian Country.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Future plc: UK-listed multi-vertical digital media and magazine publisher operating 200+ brands across home, tech, gaming, wellness, and lifestyle verticals. Closest international peer in operating model: vertical niche content, data-driven audience monetization, multi-channel reach, and licensing/ventures diversification.
• Dotdash Meredith: US-based multi-vertical content publisher (formed from Meredith Corporation's combination with Dotdash/IAC) operating iconic magazine brands across home, food, wellness, and lifestyle verticals, with significant digital and licensing businesses. Comparable in vertical-niche content strategy and data-driven audience monetization.
• Trusted Media Brands: US multi-vertical publisher (formerly Reader's Digest Association) operating brands such as Reader's Digest, Taste of Home, and The Family Handyman across home, food, and lifestyle. Comparable in legacy multi-vertical magazine portfolio model and licensing/brand-extension revenue.
• Pacific Magazines: Australian multi-vertical magazine publisher owned by Seven West Media, publishing titles such as New Idea, Marie Claire, Better Homes, and Home Beautiful. Direct competitor in Australian consumer magazine publishing with overlapping advertiser base in home and lifestyle categories.
• Are Media: Australia's largest multi-vertical magazine publisher (formerly Bauer Media Australia), publishing 80+ brands across home, lifestyle, fashion, entertainment, and food — including Better Homes & Gardens, The Australian Women's Weekly, and TV WEEK. Directly comparable in scale, vertical breadth, and advertiser relationships to Universal Media Co.
• Hardie Grant Media: Australian independent book and magazine publisher with consumer and B2B titles across food, travel, lifestyle, and design. Comparable in independent ownership, niche vertical focus, and content-plus-custom-publishing model, though smaller in scale than UMCo.
• Nextmedia: Australian independent publisher of consumer and B2B magazines including titles in technology, science, and lifestyle. Directly comparable as an Australian independent multi-vertical publisher serving both consumer and B2B audiences.

Broad incumbents

• Informa plc: UK-listed B2B media, events, and intelligence company with brands in food, healthcare, science, and sustainability — directly comparable to UMCo's WF-Media B2B publishing arm. A broad incumbent in B2B media and events that demonstrates the strategic value of the B2B media and events model UMCo is pursuing.
• Nine Entertainment: Australian listed media company operating Channel 9 broadcast, publishing (Australian Financial Review, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, nine.com.au), and streaming assets. A broad incumbent that competes for advertising spend and audiences, and is a content partner to UMCo via Channel 9 airing Eat Well TV.
• News Corp Australia: Subsidiary of News Corp operating Australia's largest newspaper portfolio plus digital media assets (realestate.com.au, Foxtel, HarperCollins). A broad incumbent in the Australian media market that overlaps with UMCo in lifestyle and home audiences but operates at much greater scale and across adjacent media types.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/48037

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Universal Media Co