"In 1999, the Kilkenny People and its subsidiaries had a turnover of IR£8.5m, and a combined operating profit of £2.3m. A sales price of 12 times the operating profit was notable, but it was particularly surprising given the combined weekly circulation of the titles was just 43,000."
"If Kerry Keane's modest company was worth IR£28.2m, the owners of bigger newspapers reasoned, what must their titles be worth? We soon found out, as ever more outlandish prices were paid by the likes of Johnston Press, culminating in the €138.6m sale of the Leinster Leader group."
"A shrewd editor, he knew exactly what the readers of the Kilkenny People wanted. Nothing about Northern Ireland, he once pointed out. They were concerned about preserving the historic nature of the medieval Kilkenny city, and the provision of third-level education."
Kerry Keane assumed control of the Kilkenny People at age 22 following his father's death in 1960. Over the next four decades, he expanded it into a substantial printing and publishing group by acquiring the Clonmel Nationalist, Tipperary Star, and Wellbrook Press. In 1999, Scottish Radio Holdings purchased the Kilkenny People group for IR£28.2m, valuing it at 12 times operating profit despite modest weekly circulation of 43,000. This sale price surprised industry observers and prompted other provincial newspaper owners to reassess their valuations upward. The inflated pricing subsequently led to increasingly outlandish acquisition prices, exemplified by Johnston Press's €138.6m purchase of the Leinster Leader group. Keane was known as a shrewd editor who understood his readers' priorities and was outspoken on local issues including third-level education access.
Read at Irish Independent
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