Celebrating the 18-year anniversary of SoGlos this summer, SoGlos co-founders Michelle and James Fyrne reflect on the almost two-decade journey from start-up to Gloucestershire's leading media brand.
Launched by the two ambitious young journalists in Michelle's parents' garage in 2007, they nurtured the seed of an idea of a fresh media landscape and grew it to the iconic media brand SoGlos is today.
What was the world of media like 18 years ago?
In 2007, the digital landscape looked very different.
Social media was in its infancy – MySpace was the dominant network; Facebook had only launched to the general public a year before; Twitter was also only a year old – and the concept of a hashtag still hadn’t been invented!
YouTube had just been acquired by Google but was more known for funny clips like ‘Charlie Bit My Finger’ (remember that?); while Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok weren't even concepts of ideas.
Smartphones were also only just starting to emerge and regional media, meanwhile, was still very much dominated by printed newspapers and magazines.
Digital media felt like truly unchartered territory, particularly for local communities.
How did it feel to start SoGlos?
Against this backdrop, SoGlos felt like a bold new venture. Starting your own business, let alone launching one of the UK’s first regional digital-only titles was nerve-wracking but a really energising experience and exciting opportunity.
Built on a full year of meticulous research, content creation and web development from a garage in Gloucester, SoGlos went live the week the Great Gloucestershire Floods hit the county.
Described as 'one of the worst natural disasters to hit the UK in modern times', launching our new website with heavy rainfall starting to come down, resulting in widespread flooding and having no running water for a week, might not have been the best of starts!
But, being able to quickly publish breaking news – about some of the county’s highest profile events being cancelled, for example – swiftly reinforced how crucial timely digital journalism was to keeping the county informed.
Within days SoGlos’s readership quickly started growing and its reputation started to be built.
What are you most proud of achieving over the last 18 years?
SoGlos has become an integral part of the county’s media landscape, that is still totally independent.
It is a dynamic, multi-platform brand with a highly engaged audience that reaches an incredible 1.6 million readers each month.
And SoGlos is trusted to help hundreds of organisations – some of which have worked with us for 18 years.
We employ an utterly terrific team – with talented journalists and brilliant sales professionals being trained, growing and developing with us over the years.
But, most of all, we are really proud we remain true to our roots and that we champion and celebrate the county of Gloucestershire in everything we do.
How does SoGlos stand out in the media landscape?
SoGlos has weathered a rapidly changing media environment, navigated economic uncertainty and embraced innovation.
Part of our sustainability is being agile in our approach but remaining committed to high-quality journalism written by local experts.
Another part is our strong relationships with county businesses that we are passionate abut supporting and who have in turn helped us to cement SoGlos's position as Gloucestershire’s leading media brand.
Has SoGlos changed a lot over the years?
It has been a real journey! We have learned plenty of important lessons and earned some grey hairs along the way.
The business model was built on a clear vision to inform, inspire and celebrate Gloucestershire and the platform has evolved significantly while also staying true to its founding principles.
The design of the site has undergone a few makeovers too!
How do you feel about the 18th anniversary?
Reaching SoGlos's 18th anniversary not only gives the team a chance to celebrate the journey so far, but also gives the opportunity to look ahead to new opportunities for growth, innovation and deeper community engagement.
We are grateful to have reached this significant milestone and excited about where we're heading next.
