According to ESI Media, changes include a new masthead, clear sections demarked by colours and a greater focus on financial, lifestyle and sports content. The editorial position will be reflective of London as a diverse global city.
The redesign follows, say the publishers, an extensive consultation with readers to understand the content most engaging to them, combined with the editorial team’s expert advice.
The new masthead reflects London’s status as a global city with a global outlook and will no longer include London in its title. Eros will have an enhanced prominence in the design, in reference to the stamp placed on West End copies in the past, symbolising the Evening Standard’s position at the cultural heart of the city.
The new design will include an easy to navigate structure as well as colour coded sections. This clear signposting between the different sections and topics will ensure readers, and advertisers, can always see the editorial content they’re engaging with.
The refreshed paper will also see some key sections of the paper expand, including:
- Financial pages. The content will see a new focus and positioning to reflect its readers’ needs. This section will be printed on pink paper to stand out from the rest of the paper.
- Lifestyle content. Now under the new name of Life and Style, the section will see new columnists giving their expert views on food and drink, shopping, tech and health and fitness.
- New column “The A List” will replace West End for celebrity news
- Going Out will continue to inform the Evening Standard’s social audience of where to be seen and will be closely integrated with its Go London offering.
- Charlotte Edwardes will be editing the Londoner’s Diary section from today’s issue.
- Sport will be supercharged, arts and culture redefined, and the Comment, Letters and TV pages will be updated in line with reader feedback to be more reflective of the diverse city, says ESI Media.
The new look and feel is the first redesign for eight years and will mark nearly a year since George Osborne joined the paper as editor. It will remain focused on news, but will discuss more global issues, albeit through a London perspective.
Jon O’Donnell, Managing Director of ESI Commercial, said: “This is a very exciting time for the Evening Standard. The changes we’ve made are to ensure the paper is as relevant and engaging to our diverse audience as possible. We’re confident that brands and marketers will see the benefit of the updates and continue to see great value in connecting to this engaged audience.”
George Osborne, Editor of the Evening Standard, added: “I’m immensely proud of what the team here at the Evening Standard has created. When I joined almost a year ago, my vision was to uphold the legacy of this fantastic paper by making sure we move with the times. Our new look Evening Standard is a modern, confident paper for a modern, confident city.”
The statement from ESI Media concludes: “International in outlook, pro-business and socially progressive, we will always speak to London - but we will also speak for London across the country and the world. We are taking a great voice and turning up the volume.”
