Detroit Gets a Taste of the South Through Automotive Industries; The Oldest Automotive-Industry Title Finds New Home With Alabama-Based Publishing Company

    TUSCALOOSA, Ala.--May 17, 2001--Randall Publishing Co., a leading trade publishing and Internet information source for the trucking, construction, woodworking and pump and rotating equipment markets, is the new publisher of Automotive Industries, the 106-year-old automotive industry trade publication based in Detroit. Automotive Industries, a monthly publication serving the domestic and international original equipment-manufacturing (OEM) segment, will join Randall under its Industrial Media Group.
    Recently ranked the sixth-fastest-growing publishing company in the nation by Folio: magazine, Randall publishes more than 30 magazines, directories and periodicals; maintains more than 25 web sites; and employs nearly 600 associates nationwide. Randall embodies a personable atmosphere, Southern charm and an energizing presence.
    "We are very excited about our new home," says Andy Cummins, publisher of Automotive Industries. "Being in the publishing world, you hear a lot about Randall and its phenomenal growth over the past few years; it's exciting to be part of a company heading to the top. It gives us the opportunity to grow, while keeping our commitment to the industry. And, Randall's energy is invigorating."
    Being a smaller company, Randall treats its associates more like family members than like employees. Every Monday morning, Randall's entire Tuscaloosa staff meets to participate in a corporate pep rally. Pettus Randall, chairman and chief executive officer, and Mike Reilly, president and chief operating officer, lead these meetings, which gather hundreds of employees in one room. Randall and Reilly give inspirational speeches, talk about goals for the upcoming week and invite each division to announce accomplishments and new projects.
    Over the years, Randall and Reilly kept a close eye on Automotive Industries, especially since auto manufacturers and parts suppliers expanded operations within many Southern states. According to Randall's Industrial Media Group vice-president, Woodrow W. Wilson, Automotive Industries' target audience is similar to its other publications: engineering, design, manufacturing, production, management and purchasing executives.
    "When we entered the trade-magazine world, we promised to work for the industries that are at the heart of America's economy," Randall says. "We want to contribute to the industries that keep America going, and the automobile industry is probably the No. 1 American industry. Not only do we want to be a publisher, but we also want to be the information leader. Our goal is to be a mile deep in each industry we serve, and we plan to do that with Automotive Industries."
    Randall already enjoys an impressive market share in the trucking industry. Currently, Randall's Trucking Media Group publishes Overdrive, Truckers News and Commercial Carrier Journal (combined with Trucking Co.) magazines; produces and maintains it's the "everything trucking" information and service website, eTrucker.net; coordinates and promotes the Great American Trucking Show; sells and maintains billboards in truck stops across the nation; coordinates, promotes and produces national weekly radio programs; and hosts forums for trucking executives, drivers and drivers' spouses.
    Automotive Industries has already expanded its Detroit sales staff and is adding new editors to its respected and experience group of automotive writers. The publication's sales, editorial and art departments will remain in Detroit as a satellite Randall Publishing office; the circulation, Web, pre-press and marketing divisions will be in Tuscaloosa.

    About Randall

    Founded in 1934, Randall Publishing Co. now publishes more than 30 magazines, directories and periodicals, and maintains more than 25 websites. Randall operates the Trucking Media Group (Overdrive, Commercial Carrier Journal and Truckers News magazines), the Construction Media Group (Equipment World, and RentSmart! magazines) and the Industrial Media Group (Pumps & Systems, Modern Woodworking and Automotive Industries magazines). Randall also owns and operates several online media entities (including www.eTrucker.net, www.e-worldconstruction.com, www.pump-zone.com, and www.modernwoodworking.com), trade shows (PumpUsers Expo and the Great American Trucking Show), radio programs, a billboard company, a company-sponsored publication division serving Fortune 500 companies, a UCC-filing database and research group, and other media-oriented services.