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You may have noticed: For the first time in 23 years, there’s a new name on the masthead under the editor and publisher title.

It’s true. Bill Lowry, the venerable founder of MiBiz and a tireless advocate for small business, has ceded his title to yours truly. Bill sold the magazine a couple of weeks ago to REVUE Holding Co., Inc., a Grand Rapids-based niche-publishing firm that’s committed to print journalism — as in, printing it on paper and distributing it to readers. We publish two other magazines about local entertainment in West Michigan and Mid Michigan called REVUE. MiBiz is our second acquisition. All told, the three publications will allow us to reach about 150,000 readers each month in many of Michigan’s largest cities outside of metro Detroit.

I’ll spare you the spin about “synergies” and “being opportunistic” and just say that I’m pretty stoked to be back in business journalism. My career began at a trade magazine called Pet Age (no kidding) and I used to be a business reporter and columnist for the Chicago Tribune.

Now, I get the honor of helming a solid publication with a long track record — coincidentally, MiBiz was started in the same month as REVUE some 23 years ago – and it’s got a great team in place. We want to make it a must-read and a source of business intelligence for anyone doing business in Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, and along the lakeshore.

We don’t plan any big changes right off the bat, but hopefully you’ll notice some incremental improvements every month for the rest of time. Our goal is to make MiBiz more relevant for readers and advertisers by being hyperlocal and packed with news you can use. We have a good idea of what we think belongs in the magazine, but we would like to hear your thoughts, too. My email is This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , and I now have about six phone numbers between the magazines, so just reach me on my Google Voice number: 616-284-1751. (Note to self: we need to cut our telecommunications costs in 2012.)

And, of course, if you have a good business story, let us know.

On a closing note, let me tip my hat to Bill Lowry. He’s been a great owner of this publication since day one — someone who’s given opportunities to scores of employees, writers, columnists and businesses around the region. I’m pleased that he’ll continue to write his “Parting Shots” column once a month as he pursues new opportunities of his own. He can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Be good.

Brian Edwards
Editor & Publisher
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