Primedia Outdoor is celebrating its 25th anniversary throughout July and on this notable milestone looks back on the evolution of the company and the accomplishments over the last 25 years.
Formerly known as Primedia Ad Displays, Primedia Outdoor was established in 1994 as an outdoor advertising company focusing on the marketing and sales of outdoor advertising signage for effective media placement solutions in the outdoor environment.
Primedia Ad Displays bought a number of outdoor companies to become the biggest contender in the outdoor industry. The company was originally headquartered in Cape Town, and moved to the present headquarters in Constantia Kloof, Johannesburg in 1998 when current CEO Dave Roberts joined Primedia Outdoor as Finance Executive for Primedia Outdoor.
For 25 years, Primedia Outdoor has had the privilege of working closely with brands and clients, media agencies, local municipalities, as well as landlords, who have collectively contributed to the success of the company. The Primedia Outdoor team wishes to express gratitude to all the valued clients and stakeholders. Roberts further expressed his appreciation, ‘Primedia Outdoor wishes to say ‘thank you’ to everyone involved in making our business a successful Out-of-Home media company. We look forward to continued collaboration and shared successes in the future.’
In June 2008, Primedia Outdoor developed the first large format roadside digital billboards in South Africa. The Urban LED network started with only five sites in and around Sandton. In 2013, Primedia Outdoor launched the first large format highway LED in South Africa on the N1 Highway – today Primedia Outdoor has seven 4.5m x 18m digital billboards along the busiest highways in South Africa.
Spectrum, the Primedia company that was responsible for the technology and operations of the LEDs, was consolidated into Primedia Outdoor in 2017. The Township LED network has recently been developed further into five locations across South Africa. This year saw the launch of the largest airport roadside LED in South Africa, which was installed at King Shaka International Airport in Durban.
In total, Primedia Outdoor has over 1000sqm of digital roadside display. The powerful Rank TV digital product in the taxi ranks also continues to grow from strength to strength, ensuring Primedia Outdoor delivers the best-digitised offerings to clients and the public across all the diverse markets in South Africa.
A level 1 BBEEE company, Primedia Outdoor believes in their employees and always gives them the best opportunities, as it is the people and their talent that shapes the future of Primedia Outdoor. Primedia Outdoor and its employees live and are led by eight values that constitute how people are treated and how business is conducted as a whole.
In 2003, Primedia Outdoor empowered operational staff working at the company to establish eight dedicated teams and independent contractors across the country to manage operational processes in the different regions. They were assisted in starting their own companies and entered into service agreements with Primedia Outdoor.
Today Primedia Outdoor continues to work together with these independent contractors to deliver outstanding service to all stakeholders and ensure their structures are always maintained to high standards.
Talent has played a major role with the digitisation of Primedia Outdoor’s inventory over the years. Primedia Outdoor values the global affiliations it has with the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA) and World Out-of-Home Organisation (WOO) formerly known as FEPE, ensuring that they are on top of global trends, innovation and best practices.
Primedia Outdoor is positioned as a dynamic Digital Out-of-Home expert after being nominated in the Top 3 in the world for an international technology innovation award from the World Out-of-Home Organisation in 2019.
