Steve Jordan interviews his successor as editor of The Mover.
A friend once told me that the best time to sell a business is when a buyer is standing in front of you. It was back in the summer of 2023 that I found myself in that very position. Richard Pegler, who stages The Movers and Storers Show every year in the UK, was interested in buying The Mover.
In truth I didn’t want to sell it. It was mine. It was personal. But I knew I should. As I slipped gracefully (or maybe not so gracefully) into my eighth decade on this planet, I realised that I couldn’t go on forever. Sooner or later, I would have to let go. Selling would help to ensure that the industry’s only independent magazine would continue long after I had drifted into oblivion. Like it or not, the time was right.
So I sold my beloved magazine to Richard with an understanding that I would continue to support him as editor until a suitable replacement could be found. Two years later, that knight has polished his shining armour and galloped his steed over the crest of the hill, ready to meet whatever challenges the good people of the moving industry choose to throw at him. His name: Patrick Hicks.
Patrick is new to the moving sector, but he’s no rookie. One of his first jobs on leaving university was with a shipping magazine as a staff writer, eventually becoming the editor. He subsequently set up his own magazine focussing on container management which developed into a company handling four shipping-related titles. Later Patrick established the Container Owners Association (COA), the International Tanker Container Association (ITCO) and, in 2020, the Container Self-Storage and Traders Association (CSTA). The CSTA, which now claims over 150 members in 20 countries, is for companies providing containerised self storage and their container suppliers.
Patrick’s pedigree as an editor, and his knowledge of shipping, is clear. But the moving business is different. How does he feel about taking on something new? “I think it’s a dynamic market with a lot of potential for the publication to develop,” he said. “I’m no expert in moving, and I know I have a steep learning curve ahead, but I will try to learn as quickly as I can. I need to get a sense of what’s interesting to the readership, what’s relevant, and what will encourage readers to continue to support the magazine in different ways.”
He understands that he will only be able to do that by talking to people, so expects to be spending a lot of time getting to know our readers in the early weeks ...
Photos:
Top: Patrick Hicks (left) and Steve Jordan.
Bottom: Patrick (left) and James Hicks, the new editorial team at The Mover.