The Burton Trader ceased publication this summer as part of a series of closures by Trinity which led to the loss of around 90 jobs.

Now HTFP has learned it is to be reborn under a different name, the Independent Trader, from 1 October.

Those involved in the plan include two journalists, reporter Helen Werin and photographer Robin Weaver, who previously worked for the Trader in a freelance capacity.

The new venture will be headed up by local businessman Chris Clark, who is selling his own business to help fund the new paper.

Chris will be both managing editor and editor of the title, while Sadie Norton, a former Trinity employee, will be sales director.

Sadie told HTFP: "Chris had been one of my regular customers and he approached me with the idea of relaunching the Trader.

"It was a good advertising platform and he knew that if his own business was missing that platform there would be a hole in the market."

The new paper is unable to use the Burton Trader brand name as that is still owned by Trinity, but Sadie said the new title would be "similar" to its predecessor.

It will circulate in Burton and South Derbyshire and will operate from offices at Fairvale House, Derby Street, Burton. The old paper's offices were based at Union Street.

The Trader's staff can be contacted on sadie.trader@yahoo.co.uk for sales matters or helenwerin.trader@yahoo.co.uk for editorial.

The Burton Trader, originally part of the late Lionel Pickering's pioneering Trader Group, was one of nine free weeklies closed by Trinity this summer including the Lichfield Post, Tamworth Times and Walsall Observer.

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