Lincoln, St. Louis Publishers Add Corporate Classified Sales Roles
October 12 2015 - 5:00PM
Business Wire
Lee Enterprises (NYSE: LEE), a leading provider of news,
information and advertising in 50 markets, has expanded the roles
of two of its top publishers to include companywide
responsibilities for sales in key categories.
Lincoln Journal Star publisher Ava Thomas has been named senior
sales executive for automotive and will provide leadership for
driving automotive advertising across Lee. Ray Farris, publisher of
the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, will also serve as senior sales
executive for classified and will oversee classified sales,
including employment and real estate, for all Lee properties.
“These appointments will further sharpen our focus on
advertising revenue and operational excellence,” said Mary Junck,
Lee president and chief executive officer. “Ava and Ray are
talented executives with vast experience and proven success in
these areas of classified sales. Bringing their expertise to the
corporate level is a great opportunity for us as we look to drive
results in these categories across all Lee markets.
“We’re excited to have them in place as we kick off the first
quarter of our fiscal year and expect 2016 to be another year of
strong free cash flow and excellent operating margins for Lee.”
Thomas joined Lee Enterprises in 1995 and has held several
leadership positions at the Lincoln Journal Star, including online
sales manager, classified sales manager, classified advertising
manager, advertising director and general manager before being
named publisher in 2014.
“While the car-buying process has changed dramatically in recent
years, the dealers’ need to reach local audiences remains the same,
and Lee has many new tools to help dealers connect with buyers in
their markets,” Thomas said. “I spent many years working directly
with auto dealers across the midwest, and I’m excited by the
opportunity to bring my experience to an already outstanding
automotive sales team.”
Farris has been publisher of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch since
2013. He joined the company in 2006 as vice president of classified
advertising. In 2009 he was promoted to vice president of
advertising and was appointed general manager in 2010. Prior to
joining Lee, Farris was vice president of classified advertising
for the Detroit News and Detroit Free Press.
“Our broad platform of print and digital classified products
remains a highly effective tool to help advertisers get their
message to the local community,” Farris said. “I am eager to begin
working with the management at our other properties to best
position these products to produce positive results for our
advertisers and, in turn, strengthen classified for Lee.”
ABOUT LEE
Lee Enterprises is a leading provider of local news and
information, and a major platform for advertising in its markets,
with 46 daily newspapers and a joint interest in four others,
rapidly growing digital products and nearly 300 specialty
publications in 22 states. Lee's newspapers have circulation of 1.0
million daily and 1.4 million Sunday, reaching more than three
million readers in print alone. Lee's markets include St. Louis,
MO; Lincoln, NE; Madison, WI; Davenport, IA; Billings, MT;
Bloomington, IL; and Tucson, AZ. Lee Common Stock is traded on the
New York Stock Exchange under the symbol LEE. For more information
about Lee, please visit www.lee.net.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20151012006034/en/
Lee EnterprisesCharles Arms, 563-383-2100Director of
CommunicationsIR@lee.net
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