Mumbrella is an Australian marketing and media industrynews website. It was started in December 2008 by Tim Burrowes, and has since gone on to become a popular source for news, analysis and commentary on the advertising, PR, and media industries.
History
Founded in 2008 by former UK-based magazine editor Tim Burrowes, Mumbrella sought to fill a gap in the niche market for up to date advertising and media industry news; an area then dominated by weekly industry trade magazines. After beginning his career as a newspaper journalist, Burrowes gained experience writing on the media and marketing industries after he was appointed editor at UK advertising industry magazine MediaWeek. He later became editor of B&T Magazine in Australia, before deciding to create Mumbrella. Mumbrella was initially designed to primarily be a free weekly email newsletter, with the website simply acting antecedent to it. However, the site quickly became the prime focus after it rapidly gained an audience through its fast reporting on industry news and critical commentary. By 2012, the website was reaching over 200,000 unique readers per month, and turning over $1.5m per year through its various revenue streams. Mumbrella expanded into the Asian market in 2013 with the launch of Mumbrella Asia. The publication now hosts Asian versions of its successful Mumbrella Awards and Mumbrella360 industry conference. The business was sold to US-based events company Diversified Communications for a reported AU$8 million at the end of 2017, with a view to expanding the events side of the Mumbrella brand. The name Mumbrella was suggested by a friend after Burrowes described his idea for the site as being about things under the 'media and marketing umbrella', a phrase that the name ultimately became derived from.
Events
Mumbrella runs a number of industry events to in addition to its website. Mumbrella360, the leading advertising and media conference in Australia, was launched in 2011. It attracts over 2000 attendees across three days, and through its high ticket price and significant sponsorship deals has become a major income stream for the publication. Mumbrella runs media and marketing industryawards show the Mumbrella Awards, launched in 2013, an event which draws over 1000 attendees. The site also hosts a number of more specific industry events and professional training classes across Australia.
