Emap Moves Looks Into Celebrity Territory

Emap Elan’s Looks magazine is to be relaunched with an increased celebrity focus, a new logo and the title Celebrity Looks from the June issue this year.

Since its launch in 1985 the magazine has been a fashion and beauty title aimed at 16-25 year olds. Its circulation, which began around the 130,000 mark, peaked at 227,000 in the early 90’s but lost momentum during the ensuing decade, so that it was back at around 130,000 by the July-December 2000 ABC audit.

That same audit saw celebrity-based titles achieving impressive year on year growth, headed up by Heat, which pulled itself back from the brink of closure to achieve a 137.5% year on year growth in net sales. This has prompted the launch of several new titles in the same vein, including US import InStyle (see First Issue Review: InStyle) and Celebrity Bodies.

As the celebrity star rises in publishing, more traditional women’s titles are finding it hard to sustain their audience. Emap’s decision to move Looks into a more lucrative market position may therefore be the first of many similar moves by publishers.

Emap Elan: 020 7437 9011 www.emap.co.uk

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