Dylan Delhommois traded France for Romania four years ago and has not looked back since. At the start of this month, he took over as CEO of Romania Insider, the publisher of this website, where he works to develop new channels designed to cater to a broader audience. More about his role at Romania Insider and what he plans to achieve in the Q&A below.
What brought you to Romania? What made you stay?
Dylan: I came here four years ago. I was working at the time for a French company, SII Group. I had been working there during my master’s degree, and I asked if I could join the Romanian subsidiary. I arrived here in September 2021 as business manager responsible for relations between the different countries within the group. I quit SII after eight months. Although I was supposed to go back to France after a year, I decided to stay in Romania because I fell in love with the country. I feel very good here, and I’m not thinking about moving back to France. I even refused positions in Italy because I feel good here. Sometimes I even say that I love Romania more than Romanians do.
How would you describe Romania in one word?
Dylan: I would say ‘peaceful.’ I feel very peaceful here.
Having experienced both the French and the Romanian business environment, how would you compare the two?
Dylan: In Romania, it’s a lot easier to establish relationships. In France, any contact you are trying to reach is like trying to climb a mountain. Here, it’s easy to discuss with people.
How do you see your role at Romania Insider? Why take up the challenge?
Dylan: When I was younger, I contributed to a tech media website. I liked writing articles. Later, in high school, I was a presenter for the school radio. I’ve always enjoyed discussing things with people and asking questions – this is who I am; I ask a lot of questions.
Over the last few years, I have started hosting podcasts with the French Tech, something I really enjoy. When I was approached about Romania Insider, it connected to the podcast and social media knowledge I have. After SII, I worked in marketing automation and also served as a web project manager. I had built expertise in social media and audio, which is what brought me to Romania Insider to leverage these new channels.
My role will be to develop new channels. Romania Insider has an excellent reputation editorial-wise. Now, creating the new channels means bridging to a new audience, not only the younger one. If the younger generation wants to learn more about Romania in English, videos and podcasts are, in my opinion, a good way to reach them.
What plans do you have for Romania Insider?
Dylan: We have already begun increasing our communication on social media. We have reactivated Instagram with the Daily Digest, a selection of the day’s top news. The second part is the video content, namely interviews like the one with Animawings, followed by shot content [e.n. distributed] over Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.
The next step, which will follow in October, is the release of podcasts: 45-minute to one-hour podcasts, with episodes featuring executives, expats, or Romanians, not only in business but also in other fields, to talk about and promote Romania.
Crisis seems to have been the word of the day in media and publishing for some time. Where do you see the opportunities?
Dylan: Media has been impacted everywhere, and companies have been cutting budgets, also in terms of PR. This is why the new channels are a good way to grow organically. When you build content and attract views on various media, you are paid by those media. Now, companies have larger budgets for new media because they want to reach new targets. I believe the impact of the crisis on news [e.n. outlets] will remain as the budgets are shifting within companies. Even though they still have budgets for [e.n. more traditional] media, more and more companies are going for new channels.
How do you see the role of Romania Insider in the local media landscape?
Dylan: Opportunity exists for Romania Insider. One of the targets I want to reach is to build more and more relationships with companies, not only through ads or paid articles, but to create partnerships for the subscription model of Romania Insider because we have valuable content. I want to boost the subscriber base because I see the editorial quality is high, and I want people to benefit from it. I believe we can do this by building relationships and partnerships with companies where many expats work or with the chambers of commerce.
I also want to put the spotlight on Romanians from the diaspora. Many media outlets in Romania feature expats, especially in the English-language media, and I want to put the Romanians from the diaspora in the spotlight, as they are an important part of our readership.
editor@romania-insider.com
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