What Inside Retail does

Inside Retail is a B2B trade media platform serving the retail industry, operated by privately held Australian parent Octomedia Pty Ltd and headquartered in Sydney. The publication covers 22+ retail sectors spanning Auto, Baby, Fashion, Food & beverage, Health & beauty, Luxury, Sports, Supermarkets, and Travel retail, with additional category coverage in Digital (including AI, E-commerce, Mobile commerce, Payments, Security), Business (Customer, Financial, Marketing, Supply chain, Sustainability, Workforce), Stores (Leasing, Store design, Store tech), and Careers. The platform distributes editorial content through daily news articles on insideretail.com.au, weekly and quarterly digital magazines, a daily email newsletter reaching over 100,000 retail professionals, video series (Retail Transformers), podcasts (Retail Untangled, distributed via Buzzsprout), and annual industry products including the Australian Retail Outlook research report, the Top 50 People in E-Commerce awards program, and the Online CX Index partnership with Humii.

The company's product surface is anchored by its premium subscription, IR Pro, which offers tiered access at $28+GST per month (after a $5+GST 30-day trial), $312+GST per year for digital, and $412+GST per year for digital plus print, including masterclasses, research reports, executive interviews, weekly careers advice, and quarterly print magazine delivery. Content is produced and distributed across five regional editions (Australia, New Zealand, Asia, United States, and Middle East), supported by owned-and-operated domain properties for each region. The underlying technology stack is largely undisclosed; the platform is web-based without a native mobile app, and integrates with Buzzsprout for podcast distribution.

Inside Retail's commercial model combines recurring subscription revenue from IR Pro tiered plans with likely advertising, sponsored content (e.g., sponsored supply chain content from "ANC Delivers"), and event monetization through the Melbourne-based Top 50 awards. The customer base is distributed across retail industry professionals, e-commerce leaders, and retail executives, with no disclosed enterprise concentration. Founded in 1970, the publication operates as a mature, independent trade media asset under Octomedia with no disclosed external investment, M&A activity, or public listing.

Name

Inside Retail

Legal name

Octomedia Pty Ltd

Website

https://insideretail.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Inside Retail is a B2B trade media platform covering 22+ retail sectors and five regions (Australia, New Zealand, Asia, US, Middle East) through daily news, newsletters, podcasts, research, and events, serving over 100,000 retail professionals with the IR Pro subscription.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Retail Trade Media and Industry Intelligence

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120)

SIC

Retail-Nonstore Retailers (5960)

akta.pro primary industry

Magazine & Newspaper Subscriptions / Delivery Retail (CRALAAAH)

Keywords

• Retail industry news
• Trade media publication
• Retail intelligence platform
• B2B media subscription
• Retail market research

Headquarters

HQ city

Sydney

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Subscription Revenue: Inside Retail generates revenue primarily through digital subscription services (IR Pro). Subscriptions provide access to daily news, exclusive content, research reports, podcasts, and events. The platform offers three tiers: monthly digital ($28/month after trial), annual digital ($312/year), and annual digital + print ($412/year). Additional revenue likely comes from advertising and sponsored content placements on the platform.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Inside Retail publishes daily retail industry news, analysis, and market intelligence targeted at retail professionals via its Inside Retail Australia publication, multi-regional editions, and the IR Pro premium subscription service. The platform distributes editorial coverage across 22+ retail sectors through news articles, weekly and quarterly digital magazines, podcasts, video series, annual research reports, and industry awards. Revenue is driven by tiered digital subscriptions, sponsored content, and event-based engagement.

Product overview

Inside Retail is a B2B retail news and intelligence platform operated by Octomedia. The company operates a multi-platform content ecosystem centered on its flagship publication Inside Retail Australia, supplemented by subscription tiers (IR Pro - Monthly Digital, IR Pro - Yearly Digital, and IR Pro - Yearly Digital + Print), video content (Retail Transformers), podcasts (Retail Untangled), and annual research products (Australian Retail Outlook report, Top 50 People in E-Commerce awards, and Online CX Index). The core offering is editorial and intelligence content covering retail sector news, trends, and analysis.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• IR Pro: Premium subscription service offering exclusive news access, member-only masterclasses, independent research reports, and weekly career advice.
• Retail Transformers
• Online CX Index

Products and services

• IR Pro Subscription

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Retail Dive: Industry Dive-owned B2B digital publication covering retail industry news, trends, and analysis for retail executives. Closely comparable in business model (subscription + advertising + events) and target audience to Inside Retail.
• Retail TouchPoints: US-based B2B retail media brand covering customer experience, technology, and omnichannel strategy with newsletters, webinars, and events. Comparable editorial focus and audience to Inside Retail.
• WWD (Women's Wear Daily): Penn-owned B2B trade media covering fashion, beauty, and retail industries with subscription, events, and research products. Similar B2B trade media model with vertical retail/fashion focus and recurring revenue mechanics.
• Chain Store Age: Long-standing US B2B retail trade publication covering multichannel retail, technology, and operations. Comparable to Inside Retail in audience (retail executives), content format (news + research), and vertical specialization.
• Vogue Business: Condé Nast-owned B2B digital publication covering fashion, luxury, and retail industry intelligence. Comparable to Inside Retail in subscription-driven B2B trade media targeting fashion and retail executives.
• Glossy: Digital B2B publication covering beauty, fashion, and retail with subscription, research, and events. Directly comparable in B2B trade media model focused on retail-adjacent verticals with paid digital subscriptions.
• Retail Week: UK-based B2B retail trade publication offering news, analysis, events (Retail Week Live), and awards to retail professionals. Directly comparable to Inside Retail's subscription + events + editorial model, though primarily UK-focused.

Regional players

• Essential Retail: UK-focused B2B digital publication covering retail industry news and trends with email newsletters and events. Comparable business model to Inside Retail but with primary focus on UK retail rather than ANZ.

Emerging players

• The Robin Report: Boutique B2B retail thought leadership publication targeting retail executives with research, executive interviews, and events. Smaller-scale peer with similar premium-intelligence positioning to Inside Retail's IR Pro tier.
• Modern Retail: Digital-first B2B publication covering retail and e-commerce trends for retail and DTC operators. Competes in the same digital retail intelligence category as Inside Retail with a more digital-native, free newsletter-led model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/inside-retail
• Xx.com/insideretailau

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Inside Retail