Many in the industry were stunned to learn Thursday afternoon that popular custom integration editor and reviewer Robert “Bob” Archer was released from his prominent role at CEPro by owner Emerald Expositions. It was an inauspicious conclusion to a long, illustrious career at one of the top industry trade publications, where Archer’s insightful product reviews could make a real impact on the success of a product in the market.
Read more on the departure of Robert Archer from CEPro/Emerald Expositions…
Bob Archer has been a fixture at CEPro for twenty-five years and is well-known and respected for his clear, eloquent, and often enthusiastic reviews. His reviews spanned a wide variety of types of gear, but his passion really showed through on gear in his favorite category…audio/video.
Perhaps his love of the gear stems from yet another passion in his life…music. Bob is quite an accomplished guitar player. Many in our industry have heard him play as he is almost always featured in the CEPro band that performs a few sets of largely classic rock music at the CEDIA Expo.
On Thursday, this Post Appeared on Facebook
My time at CE Pro is over. Emerald has let me go, eliminating my position. If anyone is looking for experienced editorial/marketing/PR help, please contact me at baone@comcast.net.
Facebook, as posted by Bob Archer
I spoke briefly with Bob on Thursday afternoon. He confirmed the news, but declined to go into detail at this time. I also reached out to several sources connected to CEPro and Emerald, but my messages were not returned by the time this story was posted.
Another in a Line of Prominent Departures from Emerald/CEPro
In some respects, this is yet another prominent departure from CEPro. First was long-time editor-in-chief Jason Knott, who left CEPro to take a position at D-Tools. Next was Arlen Schweiger, Knott’s replacement as editor-in-chief, who was cut after a two-year stint. Schweiger is now with Rise Media. And finally, we have the cut of Archer, who is currently in the process of actively seeking a new role.1
I have written extensively about Emerald’s struggle with their media business. The company maintains a stable of media properties associated with several different industries in which it owns a trade show. But this segment of its business has been in a multi-year decline.
Emerald Continues to Struggle With Its Media Business
The company launched a reorganization of its media business in fiscal 2022. But by the end of 2023, it was clear the reorganization – which it openly admitted allowed it to save money by cutting management headcount – was not producing the results it needed. In 2022, its entire media business generated revenues of $27.9 million. By the end of 2023, this division generated revenues of only $23.5 million, a $4.4 million or 15.8% drop. [Media revenues dropped again in 2024 to $22.8 million.]
Emerald has continued to struggle with the performance of its media division. Unfortunately, there is a human cost to its lack of success, such as the subject of this post.
How to Contact Bob Archer Directly
Bob Archer is looking for new opportunities. He can be reached via email at baone@comcast.net.
See more on CEPro at cepro.com.
CHANGES / CORRECTIONS
- The sentence as originally published read: “And now, of course, is Archer.” Apparently, some read this as suggesting that Archer is now at Rise Media. However, Arlen Schweiger is at Rise Media…not Archer. ↩︎
Anything Emerald touched, it would be struggling because they don’t understand the business. Another example is Prosper Show, it was doing great until Emerald bought it and start to charging big money for the show, the vendors were not happy, so did the customers.
Bob is an excellent editor, he is a true enthusiast and always promote our industry. Very sad to see him leaving.
I pray for him and hopefully he will land a good job in industry.