Daily Herald inks delivery deal with Tribune
The Daily Herald has signed a joint newspaper circulation agreement with the Chicago Tribune after months of study to determine how best to meet the needs of subscribers for early-morning newspaper delivery and quality customer service, the newspaper announced today.
“Our goal has always been to provide the best home delivery to our customers, and we are proud of what the Daily Herald has accomplished over many decades. It is a testament to the dedicated newspaper carrier force and staff,” said Douglas K. Ray, publisher and CEO of the Daily Herald Media Group. “And we have been asking ourselves for some time now, how can we do better? We believe we have found the answer in this joint delivery arrangement with the Chicago Tribune that in the end will provide even better service for Daily Herald readers.”
The joint distribution is part of a trend in the newspaper industry of competitors forming alliances in areas where it may be mutually beneficial. Both the Daily Herald and the Tribune, for example, offer printing services for a number of local competitors.
“Many have questioned why newspaper companies would maintain a system in which individual carriers travel in their cars along the same street delivering their newspapers, in some cases to the same customer,” Ray said. “Both Tribune and the Daily Herald agreed that this antiquated process was not only inefficient but did not best serve the subscriber.”
The Daily Herald also has a distribution agreement for some of its Fox Valley editions with American Circulation Innovations and has had a distribution agreement with the Chicago Tribune for newsstand editions since 2007.
In addition to its own newspapers, the Chicago Tribune delivers The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Barron's, Investor's Business Daily, the Chicago Sun-Times and other publications.
“We have enjoyed a strong relationship with the Daily Herald, which is widely respected throughout greater Chicago,” said Bob Thomas, senior vice president for distribution fulfillment for the Tribune. “Through this long-term delivery contract, we continue to advance the Chicago Tribune Media Group's position as the premier distribution network in the Midwest.”
The transition to the new method of delivery for the Daily Herald is to take effect on Sept. 15. Most of the newspaper's carriers are expected to be retained.