Teesside Gazette editor Chris Styles is to step down after six years at the helm.
Chris was appointed editor in 2012 having been deputy editor of the Chronicle in Newcastle between 2004 and 2012.
Major stories under his watch included the historic closure of the Redcar steel plant and he also launched the Invest in Teesside campaign to support the region’s economic fightback and devolution ambitions.
Last year, he helped establish the Gazette team in modern waterfront offices in Middlesbrough after leaving its previous home of almost 80 years.
ABC figures showed that the print version of the Gazette sold an average of 17,557 copies a day between July and December 2017, down 17% year on year.
Unique browsers to GazetteLive as of June 2017 were up 18.7% year on year to 125,872.
Styles said: “It has been a privilege to serve as Editor of the Gazette and I am immensely proud of what the team has achieved.
“During the past six years, I have worked alongside supremely talented and committed colleagues who care passionately about the Gazette and Teesside.
“It is thanks to them that an increasing number of people read the Gazette’s trusted content every day. I will always be grateful for their efforts in ensuring the Gazette’s content really matters to our readers.”
Trinity Mirror North East Editor-in-chief Darren Thwaites, who will soon be taking over as editor of the Manchester Evening News, said: “Chris has steered the Gazette through a period of transformational change in recent years, helping the team to reach new audiences and develop new skills.
“As Editor, he always fought Teesside’s corner and championed its many successes. He leaves with our very best wishes for the future.”
An announcement on his replacement will be made “in due course”. Trinity Mirror would not comment on what Styles is doing next.
