Speed and Sound HQ – It seems that on their way out, our excompetitors felt the need to feed their readers some bullshit and take a final dig at us. Well, the last magazine standing is actually the one to get the last laugh. In his final editor’s column, Ashfaaq Bux said; “There are a few reasons for us shutting down so early in our life, and I hate to admit it, but the suits do have a few valid points. Wesbank is history, the law is becoming ever more stringent on modded cars, emissions regulations will soon be a curtailing reality and the retail industry is literally on its knees”. What the hell does that mean? The suits’ are right? Are these the same suits that are under the microscope for allegedly defrauding advertisers by manipulating print and distribution figures to make a buck? Pull the other one, no really, please, it’s a little stiff.
Yes, it is a sad fact that Wesbank is history, but you know what, that’s a cop out of note. We were here before Wesbank, and we’ll be here after Wesbank. I’m also left to assume that with regards to the law they just threw in the towel, waved that little white flag and jumped ship. Why not stick around and help the modders out by giving legal advice and the right way to do things? That’s what we’ve done for years, and what we will always do. We’re not bailing out on our readers. Then I came across something one of their staff members, Sybrand Mostert, had to say about their last issue. This was his little rant: “But perhaps the greatest contribution from Max was that the awful Speed & Sound had to up their game considerably. If one looks at a Speed & Sound two years ago versus now, the readers are the true winners. Will they keep up the standard? Or survive? We shall see.” Not sure if we should be flattered or take offence, but I’ll settle on the latter.
Two years ago we were the fastest growing motoring title in SA, which can be verified by our legitimate ABC figures (did you see that little dig back?). If we were “awful” then what was Max? He’s basically said all their readers were stupid. So why then, did Speed & Sound continue to grow and outsell their product? Do the readers actually want awful products? I seriously doubt it. He is right on one count, we did up our game, but then again we’ve been doing that for 77 issues. We continually strive to up the game and present the consumer with a better product every month. We must have too, because with our game raised, we simply outclassed the competition. The readers are always the winners with us and we will keep it up. We’ll keep on raising the bar and we’re here to stay.
At Speed & Sound, we’re all young people with a passion for our product, not just a bunch of nameless employees in a big corporation. We live for the brand, the lifestyle and the industry. There are no suits’ calling the shots here. We do the best we can by offering you, our readers, a fresh and funky magazine every month. We pride ourselves on being original, we have no cut and paste content from an international mag. So while you’re pawing though our 77th issue, I’d like to send a shoutout to all of you, our loyal fans and advertisers… We are Speed & Sound, and we’re here to stay – thanks to you! My final thought on the matter is a quote I’ve been hearing on the wireless lately, I think it’s from a whiskey advert. It sums things up perfectly…
“YOU DON’T GET TO BE THE BEST BY BEING THE OLDEST, YOU GET TO BE THE OLDEST BY BEING THE BEST.”
