GWR to move national sales to Classic FM

Radio group GWR is likely to create its own national sales operation, in the wake of its 71m acquisition of Classic FM.

Sources close to GWR believe that once its existing contracts with radio sales house MS&M run their course, the station will amalgamate national sales with Classic FM.

GWR would make savings by reducing to one the client sales team and research department. It is committed to running Classic more tightly.

GWR will be able to make its mark on Classic’s sales team immediately, because sales director Nigel Reeve is expected to take up the vacant managing director’s position at LBC. Jonathon Bradley, GWR’s head of national sales, is tipped to replace Reeve.

GWR sales and marketing director Simon Ward denies a GWR national sales operation is imminent. “We are not the kind of company that breaks contracts,” he says.

But he does believe there will be room for GWR to work with Classic’s macro regions to sell jointly some GWR stations and regional sales units. “It is in our interest to work with Classic and GWR’s advertising sales to bring out the best of both,” he says.

GWR has sold part of its holdings in London News Radio and Leicester Sound to the Daily Mail and General Trust, to comply with Government rules on radio ownership.