Lifestyle Asia publisher restructures publications, leadership - and aggressively invests in digital

Burda International Asia, a subsidiary of Hubert Burda Media, and publisher of luxury content platforms including Lifestyle Asia and PrestigeOnline has announced a new structure that reorganises the business into three distinct units: digital, print and services - including a significant investment in expanding its business units across the region, bolstering its workforce to offer innovative luxury content solutions.The digital business unit is the first of the three units to be aggressively launched in the coming months, with 38 new hires planned across the region. Key members for the digital business unit will be Lifestyle Asia’s co-founders, Christopher Lindvall and Richard Nilsson, who will act as digital managing directors for Hong Kong and Thailand, and Singapore and Malaysia. In their new roles, Lindvall and Nilsson will draw upon more than a decade of experience in online publishing to steer the digital business towards growth.Formerly Lifestyle Asia’s editor in chief, Michael Alan Connelly, and managing editor Luann Alphonso will be appointed heads of digital content for the region. Tony Cheong is appointed the new head of digital sales for Hong Kong and Thailand, and Chris Ng is announced as head of digital sales for Singapore and Malaysia.The digital business unit will be responsible for Burda’s digital publications, including luxury content platforms Lifestyle Asia, PrestigeOnline, Pin Prestige, August Man and Hello! Thailand, while the print business will continue to oversee the group’s luxury print publications. In addition, the services unit will be renamed to AUGMENT and endeavour to increase the product offerings within content marketing, custom publishing, event planning and an array of digital marketing services.“Our mission is to be the first in luxury. We connect affluent consumers with luxury brands and services, through targeted content solutions. We believe to support this mission, we must redefine ourselves, from a traditional publisher, to a content company,” CEO Sven Friedrichs announced recently to key executives at the BurdaTomorrow conference held in Bangkok on 6 March 2018.“We’re thrilled about Burda making such a significant investment into the Digital unit and sharing our vision for the future of the business,” said Christopher Lindvall, Digital Managing Director for Hong Kong and Thailand. “We can’t wait to launch new brands and products, while offering our clients strong social media offerings. The new structure of the digital business will enable growth strategies and improve product development."