A new publisher has been appointed to the Red Deer Express.
With an extensive background in newspaper sales, management and a previous stint as publisher, Tracey Scheveers officially took over the post this past Monday.
“I am so excited,” said Scheveers, 48, of the new opportunity. “The Express is a great paper, and it’s so much a community newspaper.”
Black Press, publisher of the Red Deer Advocate, acquired ownership earlier this month of the Red Deer Express, which was owned by St. Albert-based Great West Newspapers, LP.
Most recently, Scheveers worked at the Red Deer Advocate as the special sections and trade print coordinator. Prior to that, she worked as publisher of the Canmore-based Rocky Mountain Outlook.
Her other related experiences include working in ad sales at the Stettler Independent.
Being back in Red Deer, it wasn’t long before the desire to rejoin the weekly newspaper world surfaced, she said. When the search for a publisher for the Express came up, she was excited for the opportunity.
Currently settling into her new role, Scheveers acknowledges the challenges of taking on a new role in a new setting but said she is absolutely excited about the potential of growing the Express.
“It’s a whole different model than I’ve ever worked in,” she said, referring to the single ownership but separate identities of the Red Deer Advocate and the Red Deer Express. “But to be back in a weekly paper in Red Deer, it’s everything I’ve ever wanted.
“I’m looking forward to getting out and about in the community and getting involved.”
Black Press is a publication company that produces major newspapers in the provinces of Alberta and B.C., as well as in the American states of Washington, Hawaii and Ohio. Black Press also owns and operates more than 100 web sites in the U.S., Canada and the United Kingdom.
Meanwhile, Scheveers has the right credentials to take the reigns and move the Express forward, said Fred Gorman, president of the Prairie Newspaper Group, a division of Black Press. Gorman is also publisher of the Red Deer Advocate.
“I’ve worked with Tracey for the past eight years, and she’s got a strong knowledge of sales,” he said. “Her combination of leadership in community newspapers and sales experience also bode well for the future of the Red Deer Express.”
