CLB Media vice president, publishing Niel Hiscox has confirmed he is in talks to purchase the automotive group of titles from the company once the Annex deal goes through this week.

Hiscox says he has spoken with Cartwright Group president Stuart Morrison and Annex Publishing president Michael Fredericks and both agree his purchasing the titles, which include Toyota’s trade publication and Canadian Auto Dealer makes sense for all involved.

The deal would see the titles transferred from owner Ian Cartwright to Hiscox, he says and is slated to be completed by the end of the year. The company would remain titled CLB Media, says Hiscox but would move from its current Aurora, Ont.-based location to a to be determined address.

Staff changes would be minimal, he says, as there is no overlap in editorial and sales teams between the automotive titles and those being sold to Annex. As for advertisers, Hiscox says they see it as a positive. “There is a sense it is a win, they are working with the same people,” he says. “They also get a bigger share of my time, which I think is good. But I’m biased.”

Hiscox says he will launch the stable of titles with the automotive books and possibly build with digital titles in the future. “I believe there is a migration of money from advertising to content marketing programs,” he says. “The automotive titles fall under publishing and content marketing.”

Annex Publishing & Printing Inc. submitted a letter of intent to purchase most remaining CLB Media websites following a deal which saw Thomson Reuters buying Law Times and its sister publications. The Annex deal is scheduled to be completed this week once due diligence is completed.