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.
APC Overnight has launched what it claims is a cost-effective magazine delivery service which offers a new option for printers, publishers and mail-order firms to distribute their publications.
Air Business, a distribution management company for the publishing industry based in St Albans, has acquired Jordan and Co International, a mail and fulfilment service provider, based near Oxford.
The Economist Group has taken the decision to close its CFO business in Europe. As a result, the recently published May edition of CFO Europe is the final one.
Bauer Media has appointed Colin Kennedy to the role of Editor of FHM, the men's lifestyle brand.
The new renewable energy power plant at UPM’s Caledonian paper mill in Scotland has started-up successfully one month ahead of schedule.
Pro2col has announced their appointment as EU resellers for Files2Links, an integrated hardware and software solution for sending, receiving, and securely sharing large files.
F1 Colour have recruited Paul Brazil, formerly of Wyndeham Masterpiece, as Business Development Manager.
Abacus e-Media has been awarded a contract to redesign the web site for Research, a leading magazine and source of online information for the global market research business.
Now, the celebrity news and fashion weekly, has unveiled what it claims is a hot new make-over, with a sophisticated redesign and extensive new content.
IPC Southbank has secured a six-figure creative campaign promoting Kenco coffee, which will run in the summer issues of glossies Marie Claire, Essentials, woman&home and Ideal Home.
Celebrity stylist Nicky Hambleton-Jones is to join Rosemary Conley Diet & Fitness Magazine as a regular columnist from the July issue.
B2B publisher MPP has announced that it has moved into a new phase following further investment.
HELLO! Magazine have announced that from 1st June they are moving their publication day to a Monday. The publishers say that this is a radical change which is set to completely rock the weekly magazine market.
As part of their strategy to increase customer focus, DHL Global Mail has appointed Ian Phillips to the position of Market Development Manager. His primary role will be to assist publishers in optimising their production and distribution chains.
Aroon Purie, founding chairman and editor-in-chief of India Today Group, has been elected chairman of the International Federation of the Periodical Press (FIPP).
