Boomtown begins search for new chair as Brian Gallagher steps down

Boomtown has begun the search for a new independent chair following the departure of its inaugural chairman Brian Gallagher, who has taken on the role of commercial director - audio at Nine Radio.

Gallagher has chaired Boomtown since its formation in 2020, helping to establish the regional media collective as a national industry voice representing the 9.9 million Australians living outside capital cities.

The Boomtown collective, made up of nine regional media owners, credited Gallagher with reshaping the regional advertising landscape and uniting media, agency and brand stakeholders around a shared ambition to grow regional ad spend.

“Brian was the driving force behind the creation of Boomtown, an industry-first initiative born from his vision to change the perception of regional Australians in the eyes of national advertisers,” the collective said in a statement.

“What began as an idea quickly became a powerful movement… shining a spotlight on the unmatched potential of regional audiences.”

Gallagher said he was stepping down with “mixed emotions” but believed Boomtown had the foundations in place for continued growth.

“When we launched Boomtown, the goal was simple – to shine a light on the value of regional audiences to national advertisers and I’m incredibly proud of how far we’ve come,” he said.

“Boomtown is now firmly established, with growing momentum, industry-wide support and proven results.”

The group has begun recruiting for a new chair and said an announcement would be made in due course.