Reflejos, El Conquistador merge operations

Bilingual newspapers Reflejos Bilingual Journal and El Conquistador jointly announced Friday they plan to consolidate sales and marketing operations, beginning next month. A single weekly edition, published under the Reflejos nameplate and operated by Daily Herald Media Group, will begin Aug. 4.

Previously, the two publications independently served Latino readers across the Chicago suburbs. Reflejos is a subsidiary of Arlington Heights-based Paddock Publications Inc. and part of the Daily Herald Media Group. El Conquistador is operated by Shaw Suburban Media.

The alliance between these two publications grows a partnership that started last spring with a printing agreement between Shaw and the Daily Herald Media Group, said Scott Stone, senior vice president and general manager for the Daily Herald Media Group and Reflejos.

“Together, we will publish the strongest Latino publication for readers and advertisers in the Chicago metropolitan area,” Stone said.

Under the terms of the agreement, editorial operations of El Conquistador will be assumed by the editors of Reflejos. The respective advertising teams at Daily Herald Media Group and Shaw Suburban Media will work together in the future on the sales and marketing efforts.

Stone said the deal is not considered a buyout and no money was exchanged. As a result of the merger, the Paddock side does not anticipate any staffing changes. El Conquistador will lose its one writer and an advertising sales representative by July 27, said John Rung, Shaw Suburban Media chief operating officer.

Also, Shaw will continue to own the rights to the El Conquistador name and will maintain its own website, which will link to Reflejos, Rung said.

“Reflejos is already an outstanding product,” Rung said. “The extended reach and additional content provided through El Conquistador will make Reflejos an even more powerful vehicle for information and marketing. We also are excited that this project will extend the partnership between Paddock and Shaw.”

Both sides believe the deal will help strengthen the publication and provide opportunities for revenue growth.

Reflejos, through this alliance, will increase its prominence as a leader in news and information for suburban Chicago's Latino community. It will continue to be distributed in its core market in Cook, DuPage, Kane and Lake counties and will take advantage of El Conquistador's McHenry County base, which includes Marengo and Harvard.

Reflejos has served the Chicago suburban Latino market for 20 years and reaches more than 230,000 suburban Latino readers each week.

The bilingual format appeals to first-, second- and third-generation Latinos, which reflects a majority of the readership demographics in suburban Latino households as well as high school, college and English as a Second Language students, officials said.