special report / health and well being magazines
Nicola Murphy, CEO, The River Group, UK
and, equally, is putting up a formidable defence. “There’s saturation in the sense that we see many magazines and media companies trying to get into our space – the healthy lifestyle space. But it’s not easy to get credibility in this area and con- sumers know that our brands are trusted sources. We’ve maintained, and in some cases grown, our share in all key markets while imitators are closing magazines. We’ve also been able to expand the brands into new areas while maintaining the success of our core product, the magazine. This is why we can launch new products and have great success. For example, we’re work- ing on global video, digital and mobile app launches that can only be pulled off by a global brand that has the relevance we do, with the target market.” Rodale’s global
circulation in non- US markets grew +3 per cent in 2012, to roughly 2.5 mil- lion. This was driven by gains at Women’s Health and Bicycling, which are both up +30 per cent, and Runner’s World which is up +2 per cent. “We’re also very excited about the future
of Prevention magazine which has new edi- torial and publishing teams that are making tremendous waves with a successful rede- sign in the US. They’ve figured out how to reach an untapped demographic of the health-conscious 50+ female, and readers and advertisers are responding,” says Novick.
PSYCHOLOGIES
Belgium: French: Circulation: 35,000. Readership: 168,680.
Belgium: Flemish: Circulation: 35,000. Readership: 91,450 China: Circulation: 930,000. Readership: n/a
France: Circulation: 342,516 . Readership: 2.64 million Greece: Circulation: 13,700. Readership: n/a
Romania: Circulation: 18,000. Readership: 68,000
Russia: Circulation: 207,000. Readership: 600,000 Spain: Circulation: 33,403. Readership: 189,000 UK: Circulation: 92,302. Readership: 301,000
Arnaud de Saint Simon, group president, Psychologies, France
Weighty issues Although the obsession with health is a comparatively modern phenomenon – the issue of weight loss has been around as long as that stubborn extra few pounds. The lasting success of Weight Watchers magazine, which River has licensed for the past seven years, is testament to this. The company has rolled the title out across western Europe and now has eight different editions including one in the UK, Germany, Sweden, Swit- zerland and the Benelux countries. According to Murphy, the UK weight loss market is down a couple of per cent, but Weight Watchers is holding up. “We’ve been the highest circu- lating magazine in the sector since we’ve had it. And we’ve maintained that position. So we are bucking the trend,” says Murphy. “On the health side, Healthy and Healthy for Men, are both down compared to last year. Much as
most of the health market is.” So why is Weight Watchers hold-
ing firm – loyalty to the brand? “I think this depends on which country you’re referring to. We are bucking the trend of health magazines in every foreign coun- try we produce the title in. All of the magazines are doing extremely well, we have double-digit growth.
Rob Novick, SVP of international, Rodale, USA
But in the UK we are relatively flat. So is it the brand? Yes, of course, particularly at the beginning of the year when people want to lose weight they look at the titles in the market – and there are only three in the UK: Weight Watchers, Slimming World and Rosemary Conley. They chose one of them and off they go. I think we get a lot of repeat purchases of Weight Watchers magazine because it is inspirational and about lifestyle; plus it has a lot of recipes.”
Role models Celebrities are useful where they have relevance. January’s issue of the UK edi- tion of Weight Watchers featured British actress Patsy Kensit, who is the current face of the brand in the UK. The same goes for Healthy and Healthy for Men; celeb- rities have to tick the box – either with healthy products or via a healthy lifestyle. According to Lacy, while many Americans
look to celebs for inspiration, the reality is that most consumers, especially women, relate more directly to other women as their
role models when it comes to health and wellness. “If anything, these celebrities and their passion for health and wellness often help introduce new trends or technologies but, ultimately, as we have learned from Fitness and Eating Well, it is the personal journey and indi- vidual goals of women that drive shifts and changes in the health and wellness arena.” Was there an Olympics ‘bounce’? Per- haps in the UK, where the games were held and which has seen increased inter- est in sports like cycling, but generally no. “The health and wellness market goes
way beyond the Olympics,” says Lacy. “While the games themselves create great inspirational stories for women, they don’t have a larger impact on the market beyond the short term marketing campaigns. Again, it was companies such as Unilever with their Dove brand inspirational sto- ries that resonate the most with women interested in pursuing a healthy lifestyle.” “Readers were interested,” says Novick.
“It was the most watched event ever— and editorially, we had some great access to athletes and experimented with different packaging of that content. How- ever, from an advertising perspective, we didn’t see or anticipate a big change.”
fipp.com issue 76_2013 | Magazine World |23
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