Publishing conglomerate Trinity Mirror plans to grow the Fish4 brand over the next 12 months following its buyout of Newsquest’s 50% holding in the jobs, cars and property website.

Paul Halliwell, managing director of Trinity Mirror Digital Recruitment and Property, told Recruiter “Fish4 gives us a mass market reach we didn’t have with [Trinity Mirror-owned, skilled and professional job board] JobSearch…our job is to build on the [Fish4] brand and increase our marketshare. If we haven’t grown in 12 months, we haven’t done what we set out to do.”

Fish4Jobs is the largest of the Fish4 business’s three elements, with 3.3m jobseekers visiting the site each month. Asked if there continued to be a need for generalist job boards, Halliwell said: “What recruiters need is quality response in the right volume in a timely manner.”

Launched in 1999, Fish4 previously had a number of parents including Trinity Mirror, Newsquest, Northcliffe, Regional Independent Media, Bristol United Press and GMG Regional Media. Halliwell acknowledged that “clarity of ownership” will help the brand maximise its potential and went on to praise the leadership of outgoing chief executive Joe Slavin. “What we have inherited is an absolutely fantastic business,” Halliwell said.

When contacted by Recruiter, Slavin was upbeat on the buyout. He said: “It is a really positive move for Fish4 and a really great opportunity for my people. It will be a business to watch in 2011, that’s for sure.”