When Craig Fuller purchased the Chattanooga Times Free Press in July, he was told that within the first month, he would lose money and subscribers. A lot of money, and a lot of subscribers.
Speaking to the Chattanooga Rotary Club at Erlanger Park on Thursday, Fuller said the previous owners of the 157-year-old daily paper — Arkansas-based WEHCO Media Inc. — didn’t mince words when setting expectations for his first month of ownership.
The paper could lose $500,000 in August, Fuller described them saying. And, he added, according to internal estimates from Fuller’s media company Firecrown, it could lose up to 40% of its subscriber base that same month.
Neither of these came to pass, he said.
(READ MORE: WEHCO sells Chattanooga Times Free Press to Craig and Max Fuller)