Real Success For New Woman’s Fortnightly

New glossy fortnightly magazine for women, Real, seems immune to the turndown effecting the rest of the market, as sales of its first three issues are up 20% on initial targets.

Since its launch, in April, the magazine has sold an average of 360,000 copies per issue and is enjoying a warm reception, despite sales patterns for women’s lifestyle magazines suggesting that the market could be reaching saturation point (see Feature: Has The Consumer Magazine Industry Reached Saturation Point?).

Simon Young, marketing spokesman for the magazine, explained that Real’s success is due, in part, to three years of research. He said: “Real’s content is driven by what 3,500 women said they want in life, this is what makes the magazine very different from any other in the UK. Women don’t want backpacking in the Himalayas they want real life, so that is what we give them. It is everyday life presented in an upscale style with the fashion, homes, food and health features that you would expect from a monthly magazine.”

According to Young, research carried out on the continent showed that weekly titles were much more successful than monthlies, especially in Germany and France and that weekly readers were more loyal than monthly readers. He added: “A weekly reader cares if she can’t get hold of a copy of Real, where as a monthly reader doesn’t give a damn if she can’t get hold of a copy of Cosmopolitan.”

Young said: “Real has rejuvenated the market because it is a million miles away from the likes of Aura [which folded last year], 320,000 is a pretty healthy figure and we expect the success to continue.”

Real could see continued success as an increasing amount of women’s lifestyle magazines go under. BBC Worldwide’s Eve was put on the danger list in a recent poll by the Guardian and the future of Emap’s Red was considered borderline in the same survey. IPC’s fashion and style title Nova, which announced its closure in May, lasted less than a year and John Brown’s health and fashion title, Bare, folded last week (see John Brown’s Bare May Close Unless Buyer Found).

Real is aimed at ABC1’s and ABC2’s between the ages of 25 and 44, and more specifically women Daily Mail readers.

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