Consumer magazines spent most of the past two decades managing decline. The more confident publishers have stopped doing that. Newsstand sales and print advertising are still shrinking, but well-made titles with loyal readers are raising cover prices and growing.
Scale matters less than it did. Bauer has made Grazia a more premium product and charged more for it, while independents such as Anthem have put print back at the centre of the business and grown their export sales. Stylist has changed format several times without losing its readers. Others have gone the other way, and Gay Times dropped print entirely to build a global audience online.
For most consumer publishers, print is our USP. It’s the anchor that makes advertisers trust us and the very thing that readers want from us.
Jon Bickley Our print strategy: Anthem
Behind the confidence sits some hard arithmetic. Newstrade is now a small share of revenue and events and ecommerce are growing from a low base. Trust has become a selling point as AI fills the web with content of uncertain origin, but the paid-for consumer model that works at scale is still being worked out.
Below you'll find some of our best feature articles on consumer magazines, from premium print and cover pricing to brand extensions, membership and the future of specialist titles, alongside our latest news and industry commentary.
For a while now, magazine publishers have been on the defensive, unsure about the viability of their traditional business model in a fast-changing world. Katie Vanneck-Smith wants to change all that.
We asked Tamar Riley, portfolio managing director at Immediate, what does best practice publishing look like in consumer media? This is what she said…
For premium titles like Grazia, Mojo and Empire, growth is increasingly coming not from extending reach but from deepening engagement with existing passionate audiences, as Lauren Holleyoake tells Ciar Byrne.
The printed magazine will be a cherished part of people’s lives for years to come, says Jon Bickley, co-founder and CEO. That is why it’s the key component in Anthem’s publishing strategy.
With the arrival of AI and the widespread availability of unattributable content, specialist publishers need to ensure that their titles are the trusted go-to brands in their sectors, Our Media’s Andy Marshall tells Ciar Byrne.
Stylist’s mission has been clear from day one: to engage with its female audience in an intelligent, positive and non-exploitative way. 16 years on, and current PPA Media Brand of the Year, they are staying true to those values, says Lisa Smosarski.
Gay Times was stuck in a rut, tied to its traditional publishing model and reaching only a small part of the LGBTQ+ community. Under the editorship of Lewis Corner, that began to change, as he explains to Ciar Byrne.
Whatever the rest of 2024 holds, two things are certain. Firstly, the bumpy economic ride will continue. Secondly, the need for media companies to have a broad base of revenue streams has never been more important or more challenging to achieve.
How do you create a specialist consumer media business that is fit for the future? What steps do you need to take to be resilient and flexible as audiences and technology evolve? Carolyn Morgan researched 20 innovators from across Europe to find out.
For many publishers, circulation is all about chasing volume, but they would be much better off chasing profitability, says Natalie Smith, client relationship manager at Warners.
Albert Read has been promoted to Deputy Managing Director of Condé Nast Britain, it was announced yesterday by Nicholas Coleridge, President Condé Nast International and Managing Director Condé Nast Britain.
Future Publishing, the special-interest media group and a leading publisher of cycling content, has this week unveiled a new bookazine guide to help riders get 2012 off to a racing start.
Immediate Media Co has announced that it has entered into a binding agreement to acquire the magazine and website assets of You & Your Wedding and Prima Baby & Pregnancy from Hearst Magazines UK for an undisclosed sum.
Simpsons Comics, from Titan Publishing, is getting a makeover. The new look issues goes on sale on 19 January, priced £2.75.
H&E Naturist magazine plans to use its new approach to come down from the top shelf. The new look February issue goes on sale on 19 January, priced £3.95.
The Associated Press has announced the addition of Writer Pictures as a new contributing partner for its commercial photo division, AP Images.
UBM plc has announced that it has contributed its Belgian medical print activities to a joint venture with Roularta Media Group (ROU), the Euronext Brussels-listed media group.
Centaur Media has announced the acquisition of The Event and Exhibiting Show and Technology for Events Show from f2f events, which will be repositioned as The Live Marketing Show, at Marketing Week Live.
River has announced their appointment through a competitive pitch to the publishing task for ‘Life & Living’ magazine for McCarthy & Stone Retirement Lifestyles.
Computer Arts have selected Celloglas’s textured varnish on the cover of a new series of magazines called ‘Computer Arts Collection’ to be published every eight weeks. The first issue was available from the 8th of December 2011.
Nutritional experts at Men’s Health have masterminded a brand new weight-loss concept – Eat This, Not That! – a book that will allow readers to shed pounds without ever saying no to the foods they love.
Marie Claire, the premium fashion glossy, has announced the appointment of Toby Evans as publisher.
Unique Honeymoons, a new twice yearly title from Wanderlust Publications, goes on sale on 12 January, priced £7.99.
Haymarket has announced the death of Lindsay Masters, the company’s former chairman, who passed away on 30 December after a long battle with illness.
Propertydrum Ltd has acquired The Negotiator, the trade magazine for the estate and letting agency industry, from Ocean Media Group.
