Nigel Botterill: From parish mag to £4m fortune

A magazine delivered to neighbouring households proved a hit with local advertisers. So Nigel Botterill and his wife Sue decided to franchise the idea. Five years later, their company was bringing in £4m a year.

During his first career as a telesales consultant, Nigel Botterill, 44, worked with some hugely successful entrepreneurs, such as John Caudwell of mobile-phone group Phones4U ("I learnt a lot from John Caudwell; he inspired me and appalled me at the same time," he says) and Hamish Ogston of insurer Credit Card Protection Plan. Working with these men "made me want to be the boss of my own business too". But in the event, it was Botterill's wife, Sue, who came up with the business idea that changed their lives.

In 2003 Botterill "swallowed the bravery pill" and quit his job to create N5, a marketing consultancy. With Botterill trying to build the business, Sue, fearing for the family finances, decided to earn money by creating a local magazine. "A mix between the Yellow Pages and a parish newsletter", this was delivered to households in the neighbourhood and proved a hit with local advertisers. With friends and family asking for advice on how they could copy Sue's success, Botterill realised there was a market for a "local magazine starter pack". The couple created a pack, 'My Mag', which they began to market. Within a year they had sold hundreds and Botterill closed his consultancy to focus on the magazine.

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James McKeigue

James graduated from Keele University with a BA (Hons) in English literature and history, and has a certificate in journalism from the NCTJ. James has worked as a freelance journalist in various Latin American countries.He also had a spell at ITV, as welll as wring for Television Business International and covering the European equity markets for the Forbes.com London bureau. James has travelled extensively in emerging markets, reporting for international energy magazines such as Oil and Gas Investor, and institutional publications such as the Commonwealth Business Environment Report. He is currently the managing editor of LatAm INVESTOR, the UK's only Latin American finance magazine.