While African companies like ThisDay Media and its relative new fashion lifestyle magazine, ARISE, appear to be successful in the publishing business, it is becoming very difficult to make a compelling case for print fashion luxury magazines in the West. Yesterday, Condé Nast Publications’ Chief Executive Officer, Charles Townsend, sent a memo to its staff annoucing the hiring of the business consulting firm, McKinsey & Co. to help it, “. . realign Condé Nast to be a successful business in an emerging economy that is now predicted to be painfully slow in recovering.”
Below are the huge hits luxury magazine print publications are taking the worse being W:
Change reflects 2008 to 2009 comparison
Vogue -36.7%
W -53%
Harper’s Baazar -26%
Elle -21%
Essence -16%
Teen Vogue -31.3%
GQ -31%
Details -34.6%
Is print as we know it dead?