Seattle Met has new owners after parent company sale, layoffs begin

Seattle Met, a beloved monthly city magazine documenting news, culture, and lifestyle throughout Seattle, has new owners after its parent company was purchased.

SagaCity Media, the parent company of Seattle Met and other magazines (including Portland Magazine in Oregon, Park City Magazine in Utah, and Vail Beaver Creek Magazine in Colorado), sold its collection of publications to Hour Media in March after struggling to “return to profitability.”

“I’m hopeful that these incredible brands: Portland Monthly, Seattle Met, Houstonia Magazine, Aspen Sojourner, Vail Beaver Creek Magazine, and Park City Magazine, that have been such forces for good in our communities, will have a new opportunity to grow and thrive,” SagaCity Media co-founder Nicole Vogel stated, according to The Seattle Times.

SagaCity Media entered a “receivership” last November. A receivership is when a court-appointed third party manages a company’s assets as an alternative to bankruptcy.

Layoffs for Seattle Met after it was acquired

Hour Media, based in Michigan, bought SagaCity Media for $1.6 million, with layoffs for the local magazine already underway. Seattle Met’s editor-in-chief, Eric Nusbaum, who’s held that position since March 2023, was among those laid off, along with two editors and an art director.

“After three years, yesterday was my last day as editor in chief at Seattle Met,” Nusbaum wrote on LinkedIn. “I’m very grateful for the talented, kind people I got to work alongside — friends for life. And I’m super proud of the stories we got to tell together. I always strove to create a magazine that left our readers more informed, more empathetic, and more curious about their city (and their neighbors) than before.”

Seattle Met published its first issue 20 years ago.

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