With former Westwood One CEO Peter Kosann, pictured, on board as COO, Connoisseur Media CEO Jeff Warshaw says the current state of the radio industry makes it a “landmark opportunity” to grow his company. Warshaw told RBR that operations are still important and the radio industry has “dropped the ball,” so it is a good time to grow his company.
“We think that people have overpaid and are overleveraged and undermanaged – and they’ve underspent and underinvested. We think this is why the industry is in the position it is in. We’ve put ourselves financially, and now from a personnel perspective, into a position to capitalize on the situation that the industry is in,” Warshaw said.
In his new position, Kosann will be focusing on extracting more revenue from Connoisseur’s markets, investing in the company’s people, marketing, and launching radio stations in additional markets. He also said a high priority will be developing strategies for growth in the digital arena. Connoisseur Media currently owns 22 stations in six markets, with stations pending launch in three other markets.
Given his professional history, RBR asked Kosann the question that many of our readers may have thought of as well: Is Connoisseur looking to get into the radio syndication business? “We have enough on our plate,” Kosann said, with Warshaw agreeing that the company has plenty of opportunities for growth without trying to get into another business.
