Boomtown chair and ‘driving force’ Brian Gallagher steps down
Boomtown’s independent chair Brian Gallagher has stepped down, after taking a role as Nine Radio’s commercial director.
Gallagher was the inaugural chair of Boomtown, a collective of nine regional media owners, on its establishment in 2020. He was appointed independent chair in August 2023, months after leaving the chief sales role at SCA.
Gallagher spent eight years at SCA, and previously held sales leadership positions at Nine and Network 10. He was also the CEO of Full Circle Entertainment, and Ignite Media Brands.
Brian Gallagher
Describe by the collective as “the driving force behind the creation of Boomtown”, Gallagher said in the announcement he is departing “with mixed emotions.”
“It’s been an extraordinary privilege to serve as chairman and to champion the potential of regional Australia,” he said.
“When we launched Boomtown, the goal was simple: to shine a light on the value of regional audiences to national advertisers, and I’m incredibly proud of how far we’ve come.
“Boomtown is now firmly established, with growing momentum, industry-wide support, and proven results. It’s in a strong position to continue flourishing, and I have every confidence that it will go from strength to strength. I look forward to watching its continued success.”
Boomtown is a collaboration between SCA, WIN, Seven Network, ARN, ACM, News Corp, Nine, NBN, and Imparja, offering regional advertising opportunities that reach close to 10 million regional and rural Australians.
A release from the collective acknowledged “the remarkable legacy that Brian leaves in the creation of Boomtown five years ago”, saying Gallagher “fundamentally reshaped the regional advertising landscape” in the country.
“A passionate advocate for regional media, Brian was the driving force behind the creation of Boomtown, an industry-first initiative born from his vision to change the perception of regional Australians in the eyes of national advertisers,” the release said.
“What began as an idea quickly became a powerful movement, uniting media owners, agencies, and brands.”
Boomtown has begun the process of recruiting a new Independent Chairman and will make an announcement “in due course.”
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