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.
The Professional Publishers Association (PPA) is encouraging magazine buyers to have their favourite titles delivered to their door as part of its ongoing programme to support sales among independent retailers.
Alice Cooper’s hugely-anticipated new album ‘Welcome 2 my Nightmare’ is released in the UK in October – but fans can get their hands on it more than a month early as part of Classic Rock’s exclusive Fan Pack in print and – for the first time, on iPad
River has announced the arrival of Jacquie Duckworth as Commercial Director for the Group.
Wired has announced the draft agenda, subject to change, for Wired 2011 Together with O2, the forthcoming two-day event celebrating ideas, innovations and the people reshaping our world.
IPC Southbank’s homes portfolio is launching Homes Fashion Week, an eight day focus on the new season’s homeware collections and a celebration of the week that sees London become the hub of the interiors world.
Express KCS, a leading global provider of outsourced graphic production services, has opened a second advertising production and creative studio in Pune, Maharashtra.
woman&home, the monthly glossy for women over 40, is launching a new print brand extension, Feel Good You.
GamesMaster is commemorating the 25th anniversary of Nintendo’s The Legend Of Zelda with a premium special, GamesMaster Presents: The Legend of Zelda, on newsstands now.
Marie Claire, the premium fashion glossy, is to launch Marie Claire Runway, a new fashion bi-annual that is the first in a line of investment and developments on the brand.
DMG Information, the Business information division of DMGT, has announced the disposal of Sanborn, its business serving the geospatial market, to its management for a nominal consideration.
The gloomy economic climate is not all bad. Some titles, especially in the news, home interest and TV listings, are doing rather well. Clare Rush casts her eyes over the latest set of NRS figures.
Technology and media company for the pub sector Inapub has forged a commercial partnership with community media publisher Archant.
Condé Nast has announced the launch of a college, The Condé Nast College of Fashion & Design.
Look magazine is building its brand and beauty credentials with the launch of a new cosmetics range, Look Beauty.
The number of British people growing their own fruit and veg has soared in 2011, but we are coming a cropper because of our lack of knowledge about when to harvest. These are some of the key findings of an ICM survey for Gardeners' World magazine mar
