“I am convinced that the decrease in circulation isn’t in any case a fatality,” says Jean-Claude Bonnaud, president of the Sapeso branch, which publishes the daily.

Sud Ouest has resisted to sharply declining circulations so far: it distributed 313,000 copies through 2005-2006 (314,000 in 2005) and its Sunday edition, Sud Ouest dimanche, still sold 288,416 copies.

Yet Sud Ouest has changed its hierarchical organization and proposed services to stay ahead.

The daily started publishing a weekly business 12-page supplement, distributed in the Gironde region. It could be distributed nationally if the test is successful.
 
“When we propose appropriate editorial content, we get results,” said Bonnaud. Management and editors also plan to grow investigations, analysis, and public debates.

Management is also working on a new design for 2008, six years after it switched to tabloid format. It could also review the efficiency of its multiple regional editions (divided into 23 separate editions including four that focus on urban areas).

Sud Ouest has also engaged in two major work-projects, such as developing a solid online edition (still inexistent!) and a new corporate office. Perhaps some of newspapers’ problems come from unbalanced budget allocations: Sud Ouest will spend some €450,000 on its much-needed online edition, as opposed to €20 million for its brand new office.

Source: Le Monde