North American Membership Group

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A Family’s Passion
The company that is now NAMG was founded on June 1, 1978 - originally as the North American Hunting Club. Paul and Steve Burke, father-son and lifelong hunting partners, recognized the uncommon bond shared by their fellow hunters. In the woods, at the lodge, or in their communities, hunters talk. They talk a lot. They share the thrill of the hunt, the tip passed down from father to son, the excitement of their next adventure. The Burke’s felt this niche was underserved and founded North American Hunting Club as a way to bring hunters together and share their love for the sporting tradition - not just "in-season", but year-round.

"The Model" is Born
Throughout the 80’s, the Burke’s learned a lot about the psyche of the true "enthusiast". Readership of the fledgling "North American Hunter" grew rapidly and became a loud voice in the industry. The magazine by itself could no longer support members’ thirst for knowledge and the business quickly expanded into instructional books, videos, and in-person get-togethers known as "Jamborees". Realizing that hunting and fishing are cross-over pastimes, the company tested the waters with a 2nd club - the North American Fishing Club - in 1988. The Club was an instant success. The emotional connections that so powerfully engaged hunters had an identical impact on avid fishermen. The company name was changed to North American Outdoor Group, Inc. to reflect the growing expertise in the outdoor space.

NAOG continued to define and refine a model that has proven to be very repeatable over the following decades --- attracting members with well-written copy, gaining their trust through an expertly produced magazine, and creating outlets for them to share their stories.

Growing... And Not Just Outdoors
The 90’s began a period of rapid growth for the company as we branched out into more popular enthusiast categories --- launching clubs appealing to handymen, gardeners, golfers, and cooking enthusiasts.

In addition to books and videos, we began developing and marketing custom merchandise to our members - items handpicked by our editors and worthy of the reputation we’d built with our audience. We also expanded our video production capabilities with the kick-off of a decade-long relationship with ESPN to produce on-air television programming.

The clubs were a consumer and a commercial success and investors quickly took notice. North American Outdoor Group was purchased from the Burkes in 1995 by CUC International, a publicly traded membership company. The Burkes left the business, however the majority of the management team they built remains in place today.

Under CUC’s ownership, we invested aggressively in the business. Membership, which began the decade below 1 million members, swelled to over 3 million. During this time, we also negotiated our licensing partnership with the PGA Tour to develop the PGA TOUR Partners Club and its companion magazine, Partners. This marquee brand gave us instant awareness and credibility in the golf marketplace and the Club grew rapidly.

Again, our success attracted the attention of a new investor and in 1999 the company was acquired by Doughty Hanson & Company - one of Europe's largest private equity fund managers.

An Integrated Content Platform
We continue to launch new clubs at a rapid pace. The new millennium has seen the birth of 5 new clubs focusing on wellness, home arts, history, custom car, and motorcycle enthusiasts. Our launch of The History Channel Club and History Channel Magazine in partnership with A&E Television Networks transformed the "history" landscape, much like our success with PGA TOUR Partners Club. In 2000, we changed our corporate name to North American Membership Group, Inc. to reflect our diversity of offerings. Overall membership continues to build, approaching the 5 million member mark in 2007, and we can boast that over 1 million of our members have now made lifetime membership commitments.

Our relationship with our members is evolving with the rise of new technologies. We are committed to reaching members in the media that they desire - in print, online, and on-air. This has propelled us to integrate our media and allow advertisers to reach our members across all of our platforms. We are making significant investments to continue to move our book and video archives online, use our print to promote our online and on-air assets, and develop our content in ways that escape the confines of the printed page.

Regardless of how our members choose to consume media, NAMG is committed to providing them with useful, instructional, and entertaining content and products, now and in the years to come.