The Business of Magazines

[Starry]

Does anyone know when the new issue of Industrie will be out? Do they change from bi-annual to annual now? TIA!

 

[MDNA]

T Magazine China to launch on March 16th.

 

[Ed..]

^ and the themes + dates.

 

[Benn98]

Ask The Newsstand Guy!
By Eddie Roche | February 24, 2015

Ready for some quality chit-chat with our old pal Manish Golchha from 37th Street’s Magazine Café? Who’s selling? Who’s too skinny? Who should have been cast as Christian Grey? Our man-at-the-’stand expert has all the answers.

Nice to see you! What are you wearing today?
A Calvin Klein sweater, Louis Vuitton belt, and Cole Haan shoes.

Chic. How’s business?
Better than ever! V is doing awesome. We’re almost sold out. The covers are always racy. W and Interview are also doing awesome. We also just launched a new Magazine Café app. We want to make it easy for our customers to order from around the world.

Which price point is working for you?
Interview is $10, and with that quality and content, it’s a decent price. We sell a ton.

Have you been invited down to the new Condé Nast HQ yet?
No, but we do send a lot of subscriptions down there. We send Vogue UK, Vogue Paris, Elle UK, and Harper’s Bazaar UK. Whatever they fancy!

Any big sellers of late?
As you know, sex always sells, and Kim Kardashian broke the Internet. That cover of Paper was phenomenal. Who doesn’t like Kim? I don’t want to marry her, but I’d like to flirt with her. She’s pretty hot.

Is it that butt?
She has a good body overall. Good assets!

Did you take a copy home for yourself?
Yeah! It was a good shoot.

The March issue of Glamour has the stars of Fifty Shades of Grey on the cover.
It’s doing well. If you ask me, the casting in that movie was wrong. They should have cast Daniel Craig.

Would you have made a good Christian Grey?
Why not? I don’t think I’ll see the movie unless the reviews are good.

You’re still selling the September issue of Vogue in February. What’s that about?
It’s still selling. We over ordered, but we didn’t mind keeping the copies, because it makes the customers happy. A lot of people missed it and still want to get it.

Harper’s Bazaar’s cover line is “507 hot looks to love.” Do you ever fact check that number?
I don’t have that much time on my hands! I wish I did. Bazaar is a pretty stable seller. They don’t go for controversial covers. They go for classy.

How’s Lucky doing?
For $3.99, it’s almost like an US Weekly in terms of thickness. There’s not enough content. It’s only 96 pages. I want it to do well. I like these magazines, and I want them to be on our shelves.

Recognize any faces on the March issue of Vanity Fair?
Isn’t that Hilary Swank?

Amy Adams! Nice try.
Channing Tatum is awesome. Everything he does turns to gold.

What are you doing with Porter?
We are doing online promotions with them. In such a small amount of time, they’ve done pretty well to establish themselves.

You have copies of Charlie Hebdo. How did that happen?
When it came out, we had at least 1,500 people call us or stop by the store looking for it. I persuaded my distributor to get these copies and they finally decided to do it. I was on the phone with him every day for 15 days—my customers wanted it. It sells for $10.

You could have charged $20.
No, no. I know there were people selling them on eBay for $500, but we wouldn’t do that. That’s immoral. We got them too late so we’ve probably sold 75–80 copies, which isn’t close to what we would have sold if we had them earlier.

People are so fickle.
Those are your words.

What else is doing well?
Cherry Bombe! Have you seen it? It’s from Brooklyn, and it’s about food and culture. Nice paper quality. It’s a new age kind of publication. Adam Lambert on the cover of Classic Rock with members of Queen is also doing well, because they have a huge concert coming up in England. We’ve sold about 500 copies. We work with the Adam Lambert fan club.

Tell us more!
Someone posted about us on one of his fan pages about five or six years ago and since then, the numbers have been increasing every time a big issue comes out. A lot of our business comes from Adam Lambert fans.

Good to know! Where are the dirty magazines?
In the back of the store. We don’t sell too many dirty magazines, believe it or not. Not a big audience for Buttman.

Do you have shoplifters?
We used to—we were very ignorant. Then we caught a couple of people, and after that, we became very vigilant. As soon as they come in, we spot them because they are usually wearing a baseball cap or something to hide their face.

What does a shoplifter steal?
Weeklies. They can steal an US Weekly and sell it anywhere for a buck. They also steal p*rno magazines, but mostly for self-consumption.

You’re still loving what you do!
Absolutely! We’re adding new ways for customers to reach us. Today, we carry the most magazines that we’ve ever carried.

You’re proof that the magazine industry is alive and well.
Yup. We’re thriving!

Last question: Why no Reese’s Pieces?
We sell out of them all the time! I need to talk to my candy guy. But Snickers is still our best seller. Satisfying, right?

Source: www.fashionweekdaily.com/ask-the-newsstand-guy/

 

[Benn98]

No wonder V consistently turn out such tacky and suggestive covers, it must sell very well for them. It's really sickening to think of everyone rushing for Selena's cover.

 

[Miss Dalloway]

There is an article about Vogue Turkey at WWD, but its locked, it seems they are doing really well. If anyone has access, would be great if it was posted.

 

[Benn98]

There is an article about Vogue Turkey at WWD, but its locked, it seems they are doing really well. If anyone has access, would be great if it was posted.

I found an alternate link, nothing special about the article though:

https://dollymamadesigns.com/turkish-vogue-thrives-as-countrys-fashion-evolves/

 

[Miss Dalloway]

^ Yeah not much about sales.etc there, WWD piece looked like it might have those details. Thank you.

 

[moussemaker]

Here are numbers from Germany for the last quarter of 2014. Source: www.pz-online.de/print/analyse/

I marked the international titles and translated a few headings.

 

[MON]

Wow Elle beats Vogue? Interesting.

 

[Miss Dalloway]

^ Not just Elle, most of them. Even InStyle, now that is shocking, they sell very little copies actually. Vogue Italia level of little!

 

[A.D.C.]

^ Not just Elle, most of them. Even InStyle, now that is shocking, they sell very little copies actually. Vogue Italia level of little!

Aside from the British edition though. Most editions sell about the same amount though. Roughly in the 100K range and even British Vogue only sell about 220,000 issues per month. Maybe China has large numbers but that's about it.

 

[moussemaker]

Here are German Vogue's sale numbers per quarter since 2000. Source ivw.eu/aw/print/qa/titel/168

2014/4 129.803
2014/3 136.985
2014/2 127.346
2014/1 125.385
2013/4 139.547
2013/3 137.577
2013/2 123.923
2013/1 127.905
2012/4 133.255
2012/3 149.591
2012/2 128.419
2012/1 141.413
2011/4 141.243
2011/3 146.843
2011/2 133.559
2011/1 136.895
2010/4 141.346
2010/3 138.039
2010/2 134.611
2010/1 140.745
2009/4 137.754
2009/3 160.136
2009/2 137.280
2009/1 135.498
2008/4 131.695
2008/3 143.790
2008/2 133.369
2008/1 152.848
2007/4 135.730
2007/3 147.500
2007/2 133.225
2007/1 151.861
2006/4 134.016
2006/3 147.308
2006/2 130.019
2006/1 144.021
2005/4 126.457
2005/3 142.964
2005/2 126.758
2005/1 140.456
2004/4 125.130
2004/4 125.130
2004/3 154.368
2004/2 126.036
2004/1 141.597
2003/4 133.664
2003/3 141.153
2003/2 124.702
2003/1 140.651
2002/4 138.295
2002/4 138.295
2002/3 138.529
2002/2 120.195
2002/1 128.166
2001/4 130.720
2001/3 129.403
2001/2 114.127
2001/1 123.733
2000/4 116.392
2000/3 125.902
2000/2 107.557
2000/1 118.312

 

[Miss Dalloway]

^ Thank you so much for posting this.

Aside from the British edition though. Most editions sell about the same amount though. Roughly in the 100K range and even British Vogue only sell about 220,000 issues per month. Maybe China has large numbers but that's about it.

That is true. China actually sells amazing, last time i read Angelica said they sell million copies, not counting sub. Very impressive.

 

[moussemaker]

Numbers according to the media kits avilable at condenastinternational.com/media-kits-rate-cards/

Vogue Thailand: 100,000 copies in circulation
Vogue Korea: 100,000 copies in circulation (as of 2013)
Vogue Turkey: 85,144 monthly readership
Vogue Italy: 84,687 copies in circulation
Vogue Brazil: 66,000 copies paid circulation (as of 2013)
Vogue Australia: 51,305 circulation
Vogue Portugal: 32,138 in average by edition (as of 2013)

 

[Benn98]

Here are numbers from Germany for the last quarter of 2014. Source: www.pz-online.de/print/analyse/

I marked the international titles and translated a few headings.

Why isn't Harper's Bazaar on this list? That's odd because they're under the Burda umbrella and naturally submit to circulation reports. Wonder how accurate these figures are.

I'm not really surprised that Elle is on top. They might run reprint covers, but their identity and content is much more stronger than Vogue's in Germany. What's really shocking is that the three worst fashion offenders in terms of creativity and design are on top. But alas, that's life. I wouldn't be caught dead with a German Glamour, InStyle or Cosmo though.

 

[tigerrouge]

The closure of another "lads' mag" (dailymail.co.uk

The end of an era: Lads' mag Loaded closes down after 21 years as publishers announce current issue will be its last

• Magazine was set up in 1995 and had six-figure readership at its height
• But April edition featuring Noel Gallagher and Irvine Welsh will be the last
• Lads' mags Nuts, Arena and Maxim UK have also closed in recent years

It was one of the original lads' mags famed for its coverage of music and sport - and its shots of scantily-clad women.

But the publishers of Loaded have announced the magazine is closing down after 21 years - and its April edition will be the last.

At its height, the title – set up in 1994 – was one of the leading players in the booming sector, commanding a six-figure readership.

But the most recent edition, which came out on March 26 - featuring Noel Gallagher and novelist Irvine Welsh - is to be its last, bosses have revealed.

Deputy editor Lia Nicholls revealed the closure on Twitter in a post which included pictures of the first and last editions of the magazine.

She said: ‘The very first and unfortunately the last issue of @loadedmag. Sad day. Loved every minute.’

At times during its 21 year life, Loaded ran into controversy attracting criticism over the number of scantily-clad women it included in each edition.

Circulation fell as it went through a number of different ownership changes, but after a relaunch last year, Loaded said it would be ‘far more discerning and sophisticated’ in its depiction of women, the BBC reports.

The Telegraph reports that circulation topped 500,000 for its 50th edition in June 1998. But sales plummeted to about 35,000 in 2011, the last officially audited figures for the magazine.

It was one of a number of lads’ magazines that became popular in the 1990s along with the likes of FHM and Maxim and, later, Nuts and Zoo.

The magazine’s publisher Simian said in a statement: ‘As of the current April issue, published on March 26th, Loaded will cease to trade as a printed magazine. We would like to pay tribute to our customers, staff and especially our contributors and editorial team.’

One of its initial 1994 launch editors, James Brown, told his Twitter followers that the closure was 'a pity' adding: 'The last team seemed to have made a real go of it.'

A 1990s PHENOMENON: THE DRAMATIC RISE AND FALL OF LADS' MAGAZINES

Lads' mags may have taken off in the mid-1990s, but some of the many titles that became synonymous with the booming sector had already been around for some time.

The likes of FHM and Arena had been catering for the male market since the middle of the 1980s and more emerged in the following decade.

But although many titles prospered in that era and continue to do so, circulation for some of the best-known magazines started to suffer with the rise of the internet.

Men's monthly magazine Arena was set up in 1986 with the aim of providing a mix of fashion and style.

But circulation declined in its last decade and it was closed down by publishers Bauer in 2009.

In the same year, it was announced that the UK print edition of Maxim would be closed after 14 years having been launched in 1995 by Dennis Publishing. It was reported at the time that the US version would be sold on British news stands.

In 2004, two new weekly titles, Nuts and its rival Zoo, were launched within weeks of each other leaving more established lads' mags reeling - but they often encountered controversy for their portrayal of women.

Front pages predominantly featured pictures of scantily clad women and in 2013 it was reported that Co-op would no longer sell Nuts. It came after the title rejected an ultimatum to use 'modesty bags' or be removed from shelves, it was reported at the time.

Despite having a weekly circulation of more than 300,000 at its height, the circulation of Nuts was in decline by 2007 and in 2014, IPC Media announced that it was closing the title down.

Zoo, published by Bauer Media Group, is still operating as is another well known lads' mag title from the era, FHM, which started in 1985 as For Him Magazine.

 

[MON]

Hmm kinda not that impressed with the numbers on the media kits of Vogue. I'd rather see the annual/monthly issue SOLD than in circulation and readership. Like in Vogue Thailand, seeing a 100k copies in circulation seems big, but I'm more interested in how many of the 100k are actually sold (paid/unpaid) - Like the numbers shown for Vogue Brazil.

Can't quite say anything about Vogue Turkey because they only produced their Readership. It doesn't say anything about their performance only about the reading habits of their readers which rates fairly.

 

[Benn98]

The closure of another "lads' mag" (dailymail.co.uk

I bet Romola Garai and her gang are so chuffed with themselves now. Honestly, I'm surprised this hasn't happened ages ago. The digital revolution has been extremely brutal towards these lads mags. Why pay for a hard copy when you have unlimited browsing on the web? There are sites which offer better material and hotter girls than these titles. Not that I'd know, of course, lol.

 

[DanielWP]

The Editor of HERO magazine is not Dean Mayo Davies any more.
The fashion director of HERO magazine is not Gro Curtis any more.

They left/got fired (who know which one) in 2014 August, meaning that the last issue they did was the latest #12 Winter/Spring 14/15.
The new issue is out in April.

IMO: They did a nice work on the magazine, they made it a top seller, and a relevant in the market. I'm very curious who will be the next editor and fashion director.