CurtCo Media Acquires ShowBoats International Magazine

Posted on August 20, 2004

CurtCo Media, publisher of Robb Report and Worth, in conjunction with financial sponsors Weston Presidio and TD Capital Communications Partners, has acquired the assets of ShowBoats International, a lifestyle magazine dedicated to a readership of super-luxury yacht owners. Plans call for the newly acquired title to continue to operate from its existing headquarters in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

"The acquisition of ShowBoats International, with its 53,000 audited circulation, is yet another significant step in our continued corporate strategy to deliver exceptional, targeted content to the ultra-affluent reader," said CurtCo Media Chief Executive Officer William J. Curtis. "The CurtCo family of publications has the unique ability to offer luxury marketers a variety of communication tools addressing the passions, concerns and dreams of an audience that is otherwise extremely difficult to reach. We can now cultivate that relationship further with the addition of the ShowBoats International franchise."

ShowBoats International's founding Editor-in-Chief, James Gilbert, and Publisher, Lester Abberley II, and all other current employees will join CurtCo Media and continue in their present positions.

Gilbert said, "This new relationship extends the power of our brand beyond the confines of luxury yachting into a broader market of people curious about and capable of enjoying the luxury yachting lifestyle."

The transaction marks the latest move in CurtCo's ongoing objective of acquiring and developing vertical titles within the luxury lifestyle categories addressed by Robb Report, a goal that began with CurtCo's acquisition of the Robb Report in 2001. This acquisition is the latest chapter in the expansion of the Robb Report franchise that includes the 2003 acquisition of Worth magazine, as well as the development of The Robb Report Collection, and the launches of Robb Report Vacation Homes, Robb Report MotorCycling, Robb Report Home, Robb Report Home Entertainment, and CurtCo's Digital TV.