We’re beyond proud to announce that ESco has taken home Tech Solution of the Year at this year’s PPA Independent Publisher Awards!
The award celebrates our major multi-channel tech project for the Countryside Alliance Foundation – months of hands-on collaboration, deep data wrangling, complex integrations and some seriously clever problem solving. It’s the kind of transformation that shows exactly why we’re trusted as a long-term tech partner.
The judges said it best: they admired our “complex, partner-led transformation that consolidated data, integrated seamlessly into workflows, and maintained service continuity at speed.” That balance of strategy, speed and service is what we do best – and we’re so proud to see it recognised.
From roundtables to raising a glass
The day itself was bursting at the seams with highlights. Our very own Rob Green led ESco’s roundtable session during the morning conference. “Small changes, big results” was all about how independent publishers can use smarter data and simple tweaks to transform engagement, retention and revenue. It was packed with practical ideas, from tightening up eCommerce journeys to clever automations and AI that actually delivers.
Later, we joined a lively “Taming the Tech and Data Stack” panel session (with a special shoutout to Zamir Walimohamed, Head of Digital, Marketing & Subscriptions at Motor Sport Magazine, for flying the flag for publishers with lean internal teams, which was both relatable and insightful).
Elsewhere, Alistair joined “Turning Pages into Profit”, a fascinating session on retail strategy led by Lauren Holleyoake (Grazia, Empire, Mojo) and joined by Jon Bickley from Anthem Publishing – one of our longtime clients and an independent success story to watch. Jon shared how newsstand now represents a significant proportion of Anthem’s revenue with clever pricing, smart format decisions, and a fast-reacting team delivering what readers want, when they want it. From leveraging fandom to spotting trends at lightning speed, Anthem are proving that print is far from over – it’s just getting smarter. No wonder they were described as the Usain Bolt of publishing, being quick off the mark and always ahead of the game.
We ended the day in proper ESco style – celebrating with colleagues, clients and friends at the awards ceremony in the afternoon. A massive thank you to everyone who joined us (and to those we missed) for making it a day to remember.
Celebrating our clients’ success
We weren’t the only ones taking home a trophy. Huge congratulations to our wonderful clients who scooped up wins across the board – you made us very proud:
- Audio Content of the Year: Anthem Publishing with Women’s Running Podcast
- Consumer Publication of the Year: Creature & Co. with National Geographic Little Kids Magazine
- Diversity & Inclusion Award: Anthem Publishing with Women’s Running’s commitment to giving under-represented women a voice
- Independent Publishing Company of the Year: Creature & Co. (with a “Highly Commended” for Anthem Publishing, too)
- Subscriptions or Membership Strategy of the Year: From Family Insights to Subscriptions Successfrom Creature & Co. (a category proudly sponsored by ESco)
- Team of the Year: Creature & Co.’s Nat Geo Kids & Little Kids Magazine Integrated Team Success (Silver), Total Politics’ Impact Team (Bronze)
- Writer of the Year: John Earls, Classic Pop, Anthem Publishing
We were thrilled to sponsor – and present – Subscriptions or Membership Strategy of the Year, won by the fabulous Louise Ioannou and the team at Creature & Co. for a data-led approach that delivered serious results.
The full list of award winners is available on the PPA website, here.
Tech Solution of the Year 2025
This award is more than a shiny trophy (although it is very shiny). It reflects the values at the heart of ESco – integrity, partnership, and smart thinking that delivers real impact.
We’re incredibly proud of the team behind this project – and grateful to our clients who trust us to help power their businesses.
Here’s to many more wins, shared successes, and smarter solutions to come.
