Sean Cornwell Appointed CEO of Immediate Media Co

Published: 16 May 2023

Immediate Media Co has announced the appointment of Sean Cornwell as its new CEO and Tom Bureau as Chairman. Immediate own and publish some of the UK’s biggest multi-platform brands, including Radio Times and BBC Good Food, reaching more than 60m consumers a month through print, digital, audio and live events.

Cornwell joined Immediate in 2021 as Platforms CEO, with responsibility for Immediate’s digital businesses; including its market-leading gardening and food brands, award-winning podcast portfolio and Immediate’s Product & Tech, Audience Development, eCommerce and Affiliates teams. Sean has overseen the scaled growth of Immediate’s digital subscriptions business, with the launch of premium paid-for digital products in Food, History and Gardening, and the acquisition of Nutracheck, the UK’s leading subscription-based weight management and dietary improvement platform. Immediate now has over 500,000 digital subscribers and is the UK’s leading media publisher for subscriptions with more than 1.4m subscribers across digital and print.

With over 20 years’ experience in senior leadership positions, Sean’s previous roles include CEO of Direct Ferries, Chief Digital & Marketing Officer of Travelex and MD International at eHarmony, as well as other senior general management and marketing roles at Google and various start-ups. Immediate’s founding CEO, Tom Bureau, takes up the role of Chairman of Immediate, in addition to his role as CEO of Burda International, the international arm of Immediate’s parent company, Hubert Burda Media.

Sean Cornwell says: “I’m incredibly proud and excited to be appointed the new CEO of Immediate. It’s a real privilege to work with such powerful and trusted brands which really matter to our customers. But above all, I’m really proud to work with the people that make up Immediate - their talent, creativity and dedication has driven the success we’ve had over the last decade, and I’m really looking forward to working with them as we continue to grow and develop the business further.”

Tom Bureau adds: “Having worked closely with Sean for the last two years, I know he shares the values which have made Immediate such a great company and I’m confident Immediate will continue to grow and develop under his leadership. I’m immensely proud of the success we’ve achieved since Immediate was launched in 2011, we’ve transformed from a primarily print based company to a strong, diversified multiplatform one, and I’d like to thank all of our teams and people who’ve been key to our continued success. I can’t wait to get started in my new role.”

Bureau was the founding CEO of Immediate alongside Exponent Private Equity following the merger of Magicalia, Origin Publishing and BBC Magazines in 2011. In 2017 Tom oversaw Immediate's successful sale from Exponent Private Equity to German based media and tech company Hubert Burda Media. In 2021, Tom was appointed CEO of Burda International, owner of 250 media brands across 14 countries in Europe and Asia, with a focus on content-driven businesses, new technologies and e- commerce. Sean and Tom take up their new roles from Thursday 1 June.

ENDS
For further details please contact: dominic.lobley@immediate.co.uk / 020 7150 5015

About Immediate Media Co:  

Immediate Media Co is the special interest content and platform company, home to over 1,000 people across three
business units, based in London, Bristol, Nottingham and Manchester.  
 
We own and operate some of the best-loved brands in the UK and are the market leader in the majority of sectors we operate in, including food, gardening and children’s publishing.  Our brands include Radio Times, BBC Good Food, BBC History magazine, BBC Gardeners’ World magazine olive, Girl Talk, and MadeForMums. We also publish children’s titles for LEGO and Disney, CBeebies portfolio under licence from BBC Studios and BBC Top Gear on behalf of BBC Studios.

Immediate Live, our live events business, is the UK’s leading organiser of unmissable consumer events.  We create premium events and experiences that connect and inspire our audiences, including BBC Gardeners’ World Live, the Good Food Show, London Art Fair, The Cycle Show, Move It, The Festival of Quilts and the Hampton Court Food Festival.  
 
In November 2022, Immediate acquired Nutracheck, the UK’s leading subscription-based weight management and dietary improvement platform and with 350,000 premium subscribers, one of the biggest digital subscription apps in the UK. 

We are a purpose-driven business, to create more happiness and fulfilment each day by helping everyone do what they love, creating content and experiences to inspire our audience’s passions in cooking, gardening, entertainment, and beyond.  
 
We have a people-centric culture, with clear values and behaviours, focused on creating a caring, inclusive, collaborative environment, in which our people feel supported and developed. In January 2022, Immediate was named the UK’s 4 th best place to work in the Glassdoor Employees’ Choice Awards 2022 and was the highest ranked media company in the list confirming its position as the leading employer in the sector. 
  
Immediate is part of Burda International, the global arm of Hubert Burda Media.