Largo, FL-based Cox Target Media last week said it will close down the Carol Wright direct-mail co-op business and fold the operation into its Val-Park program.
The final Carol Wright drop will come in April. The move will include the layoff of an undetermined number of employees.
The massive monthly mailer had seen a decline in ad revenue in recent years as ownership changed hands twice and marketers sought more targetable programs, according to industry sources. In 1999, Cox scaled back Carol Wright’s annual distribution from 250 million to 200 million pieces to focus more on families with children.
Cox will now focus its attention on Val-Pak, a weekly mailer with a reach of 52 million households that can better target based on ZIP code, street addresses, and other data. Val-Pak will mail coupons and other offers to more than 250 markets throughout the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Canada. The consolidation “provides synergy among all our media vehicles including direct mail, magazines, online, and interactive promotions,” says Cox ceo Bill Disbrow.
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