Sussex woman turns love of the county into a successful business

Lucy launched the magazine after Covid forced the closure of the print magazine she worked for, and she realised there was a lack of information about what Sussex has to offer.

“There are other magazines about Sussex, but I couldn’t find anything that felt high quality, but which still championed local businesses and the off-the-beaten-track places,” Lucy explains. “I wanted a magazine that was Sussex through and through to the very bones and which explored all the nooks and crannies of the county. It always surprises me how much is going on in our county and how little we, as locals, often know about what there is on our own doorstep.”

Both the magazine and the website have proved to be hugely successful with the last edition of the quarterly magazine receiving well over 150,000 views and the website getting 250,000 views in 2023, making it one of the most viewed online publications about Sussex.

Lucy explains her motivation and what she believes is the secret of this success,

“It took the Covid lockdown to make me see Sussex through the eyes of a tourist and that’s really what Sussex Exclusive is all about. We have such amazing history, landscape, great producers and wonderful food and drink. And the people of Sussex are fantastic and so interesting, with our motto “We won’t be druv”.

I don’t hold myself out as an expert although I have lived and worked in Sussex all my life. But I just love exploring and learning about where I live. My father is a knowledgeable local historian and he instilled in me some of his passion. He’s also a great resource to have when I am researching because he has hundreds of books about Sussex, some of which date back many centuries and he’s lived in Sussex for a very long time. Of course, Sussex is a large county and there is always more to learn, see, explore and discover. It’s like being on an amazing, never-ending adventure.

And I think that’s the secret to the success of Sussex Exclusive … our small team all live, love and breathe Sussex. We get out and about every day meeting local businesses and people. We love supporting other people and finding out the incredible passion, stories and skills Sussex folk have, and we love sharing what we find. Sometimes that’s a walk, sometimes it’s a new gin or wine, or sometimes it might be Medieval frescoes or some local folklore. I have walked the South Downs Way, run from Horsham to Hove and am even taking on the Brighton Half Marathon to support a local charity. What we do and see is different every day and we just try to share our excitement.

When I started, quite a few people told me I was mad to try and launch a magazine but with the support of some amazing people and with a lot of hard work, we’ve shown what passion can do. I am so thrilled to see the magazine and website proving to be so popular and I really hope we can play our part in persuading people to support local as much as possible and take time to discover more about glorious Sussex. After all, it is the best county in the country!”.

You can find out more at https://sussexexclusive.com/.