A Year of Celebration

T i m e C a p s u l e 2 0 0 4

Production meeting with Managing Editor Candice Mutschler, Publisher Chris Francin and Bijou looking over the work to be completed for all our projects, along with Art Director Jami Wright and Administrative Associate Carlene Hart.

During this very busy year, I prepared the groundwork for a television feature, “Gulf Coast Living, A TV Magazine Show for People Who Live, Work & Play in Paradise”, which I later created, produced and directed. I interviewed and trained hosts, wrote and edited all the scripts, and collaborated with my team to provide content for this exciting venture. I also continued to work hard along with my staff on building our print magazine, Venice Gulf Coast Living. My objective was to promote our publication through as many media outlets as possible. Later in the year, we introduced our radio show, which proved to be very successful and brought additional exposure to our advertisers.

My goal was to make sure we had amazing print growth while keeping my vision for a quality magazine intact. I wanted to continue to offer a monthly publication filled with beauty and inspiration, a magazine about Venice, for Venice. I also worked on preparing articles and photography for the upcoming launch of our Online Magazine. Whew! What a Year!

What Was Happening This Year?

T i m e Ca p s u l e 2 0 0 5

During these years, the magazine had 16 black-and-white pages incorporated into the color publication. Today, we are a full-color magazine, showcasing beautiful, vivid photographs and artwork from cover to cover.

Our brand new online magazine, called GulfCoastLivingOnline.com, premiered. Our total views for that year were 3,396. Last year, we jumped to over two million views and, as of this month, we have already surpassed 1.3 million.

Venice Gulf Coast Living Magazine was offered a spot on TV, Channel 21! Our show featured some of our finest design ideas and gourmet recipes. Many of our advertisers appeared as guests to promote their businesses and showcase their services and products. During the three years we were on the air, over 191,000 households watched the TV Magazine Show every Thursday evening at 6:30 to see who and what we featured each week.

A picture of our Mascot Bijou’s brother was included in the Ralph’s Interiors ad. Gayle Rector, owner of the company, discovered that our little cuties were part of a two-puppy litter. When Bijou and his brother were reunited, they played in a way that I had never seen before with any other dog. They bumped their chests against each other in brotherly love, and you could tell that they shared a special bond.

We featured a talented 14-year-old artist, Alina Eydel, in our Pleasures of Art Section. Through her amazing gift, she went on to become internationally recognized.

Sales and Marketing Associate Susan Cairo introduced Fabulous Finds, presenting some of the most unusual gifts from our area, which were showcased throughout the year.