The Business of Magazines

[MON]

Imagine if Fabien gets the Bazaar post..

Decade ago - Carine as EIC, Fabien as a mere Creative Director;

2020 - Fabien as EIC, Carine as Global Fashion Direction


Oh how the mighty have fallen



But seriously, how weak is Carine’s team for not getting this post? I mean you are a former EIC of one of the biggest magazines of the world, a renowned stylist, works for the magazine... if she’s not overqualified I don’t know what is??

 

[Melancholybaby]

The problem is this job at Bazaar is not just about getting the right stylists and photographers, there's wheeling and dealing with advertisers, coaxing celebrities and power agents, setting up reader initiatives and so forth. It's a big business. And Fabien is a creative to the core.

Not sure about the latter but Fabien definitely has the skills and contacts to lure advertisers and celebrities to Bazaar, his 10 years at Interview are the biggest testament to that. He's the only one mentioned on that article that the 360° skills necessary to reinvent a magazine both on the creative and the business side. Digital is another story, he's quite old school in that sense but so is Anna Wintour. If he surrounded himself with the right people to run that side of the business he could do an amazing job (well the bar after Glenda is so low anyone would be an improvement).

 

[caioherrero]

Next week is Blenda’s last, and I’m praying for Baron.

 

[MON]

I believe celebrities would flock from afar to be featured on the cover (à la Edward and British Vogue).

Best believe that celebrities flock around Glenda’s Bazaar. It’s the easiest way to get a fashion magazine cover. Remember how Glenda gave Kim Kardashian, Jessica Simpson, Paris and Nicole, Lindsay their covers....

IMO, what the successor must do is to add some sort of exclusivity in their cover choices. Bazaar and Elle are the Oprahs of American magazines - aka YOU ALL GET A COVER!

 

[tigerrouge]

What print magazines need at the moment are editors who still believe there's something unique about the printed page and the relationship with the reader.

What print magazines get at the moment is constant cost-cutting behind the scenes and an ever-increasing emphasis on producing easily-consumable content for the internet.

Perhaps the ideal hybrid would be an editor who believes you can say something unforgettable in a three-minute clip of a fashion editorial. In that case, you might as well start hiring film directors with a proven past in making great TV commercials.

 

[Benn98]

Digital is another story, he's quite old school in that sense but so is Anna Wintour. If he surrounded himself with the right people to run that side of the business he could do an amazing job.

Fair point! Re Anna, how could I forget that she had to be mocked before getting rid of her flip phone.....

 

[dodencebt]

But seriously, how weak is Carine’s team for not getting this post? I mean you are a former EIC of one of the biggest magazines of the world, a renowned stylist, works for the magazine... if she’s not overqualified I don’t know what is??

I genuinely thought Carine was going to be the next editor in chief of Harper's Bazaar the moment she started contributing to the magazine; Glenda was always going to leave or get fired in five years max. I seriously have no idea how she isn't the top candidate for the job. I am dying to know why.

 

[GivenchyAddict]

^ she is too focused in herself and trying to be the KL of the stylists with perfume, clothing line etc.

 

[tigerrouge]

Did Carine not say recently that she was sick of magazines, and that's why she was stepping back from her own?

Anyone who takes over at US Bazaar is going to have to (pretend to) be happy working within the cultural and commercial restraints of a mainstream American magazine - which seems to have been doing OK as a generic catalogue, all things considered, so will anyone new be given much licence to change anything?

 

[MissMagAddict]

Baron. No, and it would be a huge step backwards for him.

 

[Xone]

mmm in the end it's all about power and money..let's remember Baron interview a few months ago....

I'm sure they asked Carine, but yeah she is focused on her personal brand now...but who knows...in this game anything could happen....

I'm surprised about Karla Martinez...im sure she would not take it because of her family but if she even had a meeting with them...

 

[blusheels]

Porter's first biannual outing now isn't coming later in 2020. They replied to my comment via Instagram asking where the new print edition was, and "exact dates will be available in the future". Ugh.

Does this mean the biannual Porter printed mag will be stopped?

 

[Phuel]

Glenda’s Bazaar seems successful with the masses despite members here believing otherwise. I can’t see CN signing off on Fabien completing rebranding the gaudy and cheap Vegas-drag direction that’s worked for 20 years. And I can’t imagine Fabien staying with such tackiness if he were EIC unless he's allowed to completely rebrand this rag. His rightful place is as EIC of Italian Vogue anyway— but sadly that Emanuel person seems to have hit the sweet spot with his hollow social/environmental gimmicks with the masses. That "illustrations-only" 3rd-grader’s social project on “sustainability” even had a story on the local news here. Sadly, looks like Emanuel's not going anywhere anytime soon...

 

[SophiaVB]

Is there something going on at Hearst that makes working for them very unappealing at the moment? Editors leaving "on good terms" for "other projects" and no-one rushing into the seats left spare.

There's a really huge union battle at Hearst right now. A lot of the editors I had relationships with there implied that the morale / working conditions are not good & they'd rather be freelance than continue. There's been a mass exodus over the last few months. FWIW most of the coverage has been super driven by SEO & celeb trends rather than substantial features. Honestly, the clickbait publications are the ones that are going to continue suffering.

 

[Benn98]

Between the union troubles and this, it's no wonder why Hearst is struggling to attract an editor.


E. Jean Carroll Says Elle Magazine Fired Her After Trump r*pe Accusation

The longtime columnist blamed Donald J. Trump for her departure from the magazine, saying in a defamation lawsuit he had damaged her reputation by calling her a liar.

By Neil Vigdor and Ed Shanahan
Feb. 19, 2020

E. Jean Carroll, the longtime Elle magazine advice columnist who last year accused Donald J. Trump of r*ping her before he was elected president, said on Tuesday that she was fired by the publication because of Mr. Trump’s repeated insults against her.

Ms. Carroll, the author of the “Ask E. Jean” column, announced her departure from the magazine on Twitter and blamed it on Mr. Trump, who she said had sexually assaulted her in a dressing room at an upscale New York department store more than 20 years ago.

Mr. Trump has repeatedly denied Ms. Carroll’s accusation.

“Because Trump ridiculed my reputation, laughed at my looks, & dragged me through the mud, after 26 years, ELLE fired me,” Ms. Carroll wrote on Twitter. “I don’t blame Elle. It was the great honor of my life writing ‘Ask E. Jean.’”

Ms. Carroll sued Mr. Trump for defamation in New York State Court in November, saying that Mr. Trump had damaged her reputation and her career when he denied her allegation last June and called her a liar.

The last “Ask E. Jean” column on Elle magazine’s website is dated Nov. 22.

Hearst, which publishes Elle, did not respond to a request for comment. A lawyer for Mr. Trump also did not respond to a request.

Ms. Carroll, 76, said Mr. Trump threw her up against a wall and forced himself on her in a fitting room at Bergdorf Goodman in Manhattan in the mid-1990s.

The episode took place in late 1995 or early 1996, according to Ms. Carroll, who has said that Mr. Trump asked her to model lingerie that he was considering buying. At the time, Mr. Trump was married to his second wife, Marla Maples.

Ms. Carroll’s announcement on Twitter that she was no longer working for Elle came the same day that her lawyer moved to block a request by Mr. Trump that her suit be delayed until a second, similar suit is resolved — something that may not happen until after the presidential election in November.

New York Times

 

[dodencebt]

I read that piece twice since this morning and I still don't understand how Elle and Hearst aren't to blame according to her, but.. solely Donald Trump?

 

[Benn98]

I read that piece twice since this morning and I still don't understand how Elle and Hearst aren't to blame according to her, but.. solely Donald Trump?

I'm 90% convinced the NDA clause in her contract prevents her from going into detail. Regardless, not a good look for Hearst.

 

[MON]

This will not be a good look for Elle. Who in their right mind would fire a Trump accuser who works for Elle -- a magazine whose target demographic are Dems and whose schtick is empowering women? I mean???

However, what do we expect from them. Isn't this the same company who green-lighted a Trump editorial for Bazaar during the 2016 elections? To be honest, I won't be surprised if they're secretly Republicans.

 

[Benn98]

French magazine stats for 2019

Vogue Paris
Best selling (Gisele for June/July - 137,337) vs Worst selling (Erika Linder for November - 80,608)


Actual best-selling is Kate Moss for August (119,837) - June/July are dual months

Marie Claire France
Best selling (Diane Kruger for September - 446,202) vs Worst selling (Natalie Portman for April - 258,241)

GQ
Best selling (chef Massimo Bottura for June/July - 63,160) vs Worst selling (artist JR for September - 44,774)


But the actual best-selling is probably Gilles Lellouche for February (57,912) because June/July are dual months

Vanity Fair
Best selling (Leila Bekthi & Tahar Rahim for December - 90,509) vs Worst selling (Etienne Daho & Clara Luciani for October - 55,416)

ACPM/Famousfix

 

[Xone]

French magazine stats for 2019

Vogue Paris
Best selling (Gisele for June/July - 137,337) vs Worst selling (Erika Linder for November - 80,608)


Actual best-selling is Kate Moss for August (119,837) - June/July are dual months

Marie Claire France
Best selling (Diane Kruger for September - 446,202) vs Worst selling (Natalie Portman for April - 258,241)

GQ
Best selling (chef Massimo Bottura for June/July - 63,160) vs Worst selling (artist JR for September - 44,774)


But the actual best-selling is probably Gilles Lellouche for February (57,912) because June/July are dual months

Vanity Fair
Best selling (Leila Bekthi & Tahar Rahim for December - 90,509) vs Worst selling (Etienne Daho & Clara Luciani for October - 55,416)

ACPM/Famousfix

Thanks Benn...What about Elle? or this is only for monthly magazines?