Well, I’ve gone and done it-I just sold Kona Communications to Randall-Reilly Publishing Co. of Tuscaloosa, AL. This is the first issue of Truck Parts & Service (TPS) published by anyone but Kona since 1969. That is more than 37 years.
And frankly, I couldn’t be happier, because I think I found the best possible home for both of our publications, TPS and Successful Dealer. Randall-Reilly is the heart of the commercial truck communications business, and our acquisition closes the market loop.
Currently, Randall-Reilly publishes Commercial Carrier Journal (CCJ) for fleets of 10 or more vehicles, Overdrive and Truckers News for owner/operators, Transportista in Spanish, NextTruck for second and third vehicle owners, and Equipment World for the off-highway market. It also owns and operates The Great American Trucking Show. Quite a lineup!
At the request of Randall-Reilly CEO Mike Reilly, I have joined their team as a consultant, which among other things secures my continued presence on this page each month. (Please curb your enthusiasm.)
Also, I’ll represent them at a number of industry functions, including the recently completed Heavy Duty Aftermarket Week (HDAW).
Mike has invited the entire current Kona staff to join the Randall-Reilly team.
In the months ahead, you will have the opportunity to meet the Randall-Reilly publishing team in person, but I thought it would make sense first to introduce them to you in print on this page.
Mike Reilly is a 30-plus-year veteran of truck market publishing, and is well known in the fleet, owner/operator and off-highway markets. Soon, many of you will get to know him in person, and when you do, you might want to tap into his inexhaustible supply of Bubba jokes. I also suggest you avoid any mention of Auburn football. As Alabama’s number one fan, he certainly doesn’t take kindly to that line of conversation.
Mike also is a director of The Federal Reserve Bank in Atlanta. By law, he can’t give any of us a hint about the future of interest rates, but he did take me aside and in a very confidential tone told me “over time, interest rates will fluctuate.”
Mike’s strong right arms in the publishing division of Randall-Reilly are Jeff Mason, vice president of publishing and Linda Longton, vice president of editorial. Frankly, having spent considerable time with both of them at HDAW, I can report that I haven’t met two more capable publishing executives in a long time. You’ll enjoy meeting and getting to know them both.
The third member of Mike’s management team is Alan Welborn, another trucking industry pro, who will assume the responsibility of publisher of our two books.
As TPS moves forward as part of our new family, we all will have the benefit of a whole new editorial perspective. Trucking industry veterans such as Paul Richards, CCJ’s editor, will lend their technical expertise to our content.
Finally, because Randall-Reilly is an industry leader in electronic publishing, our relationship will make it possible for us to provide you with all sorts of new products and services that you will be able to put to work in your stores and shops.
Change is inevitable, and all any of us can do is try to manage that change in order to produce an improved product. I’m absolutely convinced that this change for Kona will do just that-produce a better Truck Parts & Service for you each month.
We are no longer a big fish in a small pond. Our pond just got a whole lot bigger. And you, our readers, will be the winners. Thank you for all your support over the years, and please check this page next month. Who knows, I just might have something interesting to say for a change.
