International magazines

Mondadori has signed an agreement with the publisher Rayli Magazine House Beijing concerning cooperation between the interior design monthly Casaviva and the Chinese magazine Rayli Home which, starting with the July issue, will also carry the logo of the Italian title on the cover.

This initiative expands and consolidates the partnership between Casaviva and Rayli Home that began five years ago when content from the Mondadori title began to successfully appear in the Chinese magazine. “The Casaviva brand and logo will now make a direct appearance in the country, the first step towards the title’s penetration of the market with the world’s highest growth rate,” affirmed Zeno Pellizzari, the Mondadori Magazine Division’s head of International Activities and Syndication.

“This is a great opportunity for us to collaborate with Mondadori and we hope to be able to continue consolidating this partnership, also by expanding into new areas,” declared An Na, vice president of Rayli Magazine House Beijing.

Rayli Home, which was launched in China in 1998, is the most acclaimed and widely circulated interior design magazine in the country. The title has already won two important awards; in 2009 it was included among the “Top 30 valuable magazines for Ad Placement in China” and, for two years running, it was awarded the “Home Magazine Benchmark Brand” prize of the Columbia Journalism Review.

Casaviva, the Mondadori interior design monthly, leader in the sector in Italy, has also been published abroad since 2006, with editions in Thailand, Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia and India.

Grazia Cina is a media partner of the Italian Pavilion at the Universal Exposition in Shanghai which begins on 1 May.

A showcase for made in Italy excellence in China, the area dedicated to Italy has in Grazia – an international ambassador of Italian style – the ideal partner. Grazia is the only weekly in the world published in Great Britain, France, Germany and Italy as well as other leading foreign markets.

The journalists of Grazia China were able to have a preview, accompanied by the Italian government’s General Commissioner for the 2010 Shanghai Universal Exposition Beniamino Quintieri, of the Italian pavilion and to complete an exclusive fashion shoot Song Jia, one of China’s most talented actresses. The photographs, published this week in the magazine, have as a running theme the multiple facets of Made in Italy, as inspired by a range of Italian designers.

Grazia China will also produce an official guide for all of the events organised at the Italian Pavilion: ‘Grazia Expo Express’ will be a live showcase of the Expo, what’s new and what should not be missed. The guide is published from today across China as a monthly supplement to Grazia (a circulation of over 600,000) and will be distributed with an extra print run directly from the Italian Pavilion, in six separate issues over the course of the Expo.

Grazia China, the country’s first news and style glossy, was launched in 2009 thanks to an agreement between the Mondadori Group and SEEC Media Group Limited. The magazine celebrated its first anniversary in March with a special issue, which sold out in just two days, and a series of promotional activities that were widely successful around the country. Grazia China is also online at www.grazia.onlylady.com.

Mondadori and Mediengruppe Klambt signed an agreement for the German edition of the weekly Grazia, which is expected to make its first appearance in German newsstands from next February.

Following the successful launches in the UK and France, with this licence the international expansion of the Grazia brand adds a significant new area of the European market. Indeed, Germany is one of the most important countries in terms of circulation and revenues in the magazine sector, with annual sales of more than 2 billion copies (2008 IVW figures) and €3.1 billion in gross advertising revenues (Nielsen Media Research figures for 2008). The women’s sector on its own – which includes entertainment and celebrity titles, service titles and fortnightly and monthly lifestyle titles – last year sold some 801.4 million copies and generated gross advertising revenues of more than €1 billion.

“The launch of Grazia Germany consolidates the reach of the Mondadori weekly in Europe’s most important and profitable markets”, declared Zeno Pellizzari, head of the Mondadori Magazine Division’s international activities and syndication area.

“The UK and French editions have achieved exceptional results and, along with the Italian edition, these four editions will represent a unique and unparalleled proposal: no other international publisher has such a vast weekly offer. Grazia Germany will also fill a gap in the already rich German women’s magazine market as the only weekly lifestyle title,” concluded Pellizzari.

The other strong European markets, the United Kingdom and France, are producing very positive results.

Grazia UK reported average sales of 228,694 in the first half of 2009 (source: ABC) with a significant increase in terms of value (+18.3%) and pages (+19.8%) on the advertising side in the third quarter of the year, especially when compared with the average trends in the up-market women’s segment (-14.3% and -14.2% respectively; source: Nielsen).

Grazia France, which was launched in August 2009, reached a total average circulation of 198,521 copies with the first fourteen issues (OJD figures to 30 November 2009) with an average of more than 30 advertising pages per issue.

Alongside the increasingly strong presence of the brand in Europe, the expansion of the Grazia International Network has continued to be marked in countries with the highest growth potential – Russia, China and India – as well as South East Asia, with recent launches in Thailand and Indonesia.

MEDIENGRUPPE KLAMBT

The origins of the company go back to the publishing house in Silesia founded by Wilhelm Wenzel Klambt in 1843. In over 160 years of publishing activities, magazine publishing, in particular, has remained at the centre of the company’s attention.

There are currently more than 50 titles in the portfolio; including, the Germany edition of OK! which is published in a joint venture with Northern & Shell and is the country’s most recent and fastest growing people title which, with a jump of 34% in the third quarter of 2009, has reached sales of 239,000 copies. Klambt also publishes, in a joint venture with Gruner+Jahr, Healthy Living and in – Das STAR & STYLE Magazine: a new German format celebrity title that is among the most dynamic in the German market and recorded 20% growth in the third quarter of 2009 reaching sales of 295,000 copies. In a joint venture with Bauer, Klambt is also the publisher of Freizeitwoche, a mass-market weekly with a circulation of 500,000 copies.

The international network for Grazia will, from tomorrow, include a new edition to be published in Indonesia by the Femina Group, the country’s leading publisher of women’s fashion and lifestyle titles.

With this new launch, following on from recent launches of Grazia in Thailand, France and China, the total number of foreign editions of the magazine rises to 15; confirming the position of the ‘Grazia International Network’ as one of the most significant players in the magazine business in terms of the rate of growth of licences since 2004 to today.

The new glossy monthly, edited by Zornia Devi, will consequently also bring to Indonesia the ‘easy chic’ formula that is the international characteristic of the Grazia brand: fashion, news and celebrities, along with glamour ideas and suggestions and information about the latest trends.

Femina Group is one of Indonesia’s leading media groups, with a strong presence in the fashion sector. The titles in its portfolio include, Femina, the country’s leading women’s weekly; Dewi, one of the most important luxury and fashion monthlies; Gadis, the leading magazine for teenagers; as well as the international titles Men’s Health Indonesia and Reader’s Digest Indonesia.

From tomorrow the monthly Flair will be present in six different countries: the Mondadori fashion and lifestyle title, which was born in Italy, will be published under licensing agreements also in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary by Ahead Media, the publisher that launched the Austrian edition in 2008.

“With this new operation Mondadori takes the style of one of its most innovative brands to the very heart of Europe,” stated Zeno Pellizzari, head of International Activities in the Magazine Division of the Mondadori Group. “We are sure,” Pellizzari continued, “that after the success in Austria, Ahead Media will be able to make the best of the opportunities offered by the style and international outlook of Flair in these four new countries.”

First launched in 2003, the Mondadori magazine is now leading the upscale women’s title in fashion images and anticipation of trends, thanks to its unique approach to international fashion and news.

The four new editions of Flair will share, each in its own language, dedicated fashion services, beauty, lifestyle, as well as celebrity interviews. Every month the separate editorial teams will enrich the issue in their country with content that best reflects local habits and news, including reportage, surveys and articles on the most well-known personalities.

The launch of Flair in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary will be supported by an outdoor campaign, as well as satellite TV and point of sale.

Along with the Austrian edition, the four new international editions of Flair will have a total monthly circulation of more than 100,000 copies.

Based in Vienna, Ahead Media is one of the leading publishers of up-market magazines in Europe, thanks to a portfolio especially focused on important international lifestyle titles such as IQstyle, Ahead, H.O.M.E, anyway.

Mondadori is launching a new international edition of Grazia: from tomorrow the Italian women’s fashion title will also be published in Thailand.

The new magazine is the result of a licensing agreement with Inspire Entertainment Company Limited, which is already the local Thai publisher of the interiors monthly Casaviva.

This international partnership further reinforces Mondadori’s presence in the Far East, an area with the highest rate of growth in the magazine business.

Edited by Sudarampai Chiang, Grazia Thailand will every month offer its readers the new trends from the world of fashion, beauty and lifestyle – paying particular attention to the excellence of Made in Italy and to a ‘local flavour’ – as well as all the latest news about celebrities.

Inspire Entertainment Company Limited, one of Thailand’s leading publishers, has a portfolio featuring numerous international titles, in the male lifestyle segment, FHM, Car, Zoo, Stuff, and for women Women&Home, Ray and Cawaii!. The company is part of the media group Siam Sport, the country’s third biggest group with a portfolio of more than 40 titles.

By the end of this year Mondadori will launch an edition of Grazia in Thailand and another in Indonesia, close on the heels of Grazia France which, as previously announced, will be launched in September.

This new launches will take to fifteen the countries of the Grazia Network that was created in 2005: a common thread of elegance that links the historic Italian title with all the versions of the magazine published around the world, from Bulgaria, Great Britain, Greece, the United Arab Emirates, Croatia, Serbia, Russia, Holland, India, Australia and, up to the most recent launch in February, China.

An international network that accounts for a total circulation of 4 million copies per month in the world.

“The creation in just four years of such a high number of international editions is certainly a unique case in the world of magazine publishing; both for the rapidity of the growth and the immediate appreciation of both readers and advertisers,” declared Maurizio Costa, deputy chairman and chief executive of the Mondadori Group.

“Despite a very difficult year for publishers everywhere, these new launches are a clear demonstration of our confidence in the future of the magazine market and, above all, in the development potential, also on an international scale, of the most authoritative brands, as in the case of Grazia,” continued Maurizio Costa.

“In foreign markets Grazia is increasingly recognised by readers and both Italian and international advertisers, as a reference point for style and journalistic quality in the area of news and celebrities, as well as providing a guarantee for the valorisation of the most prestigious examples of “Made in Italy” in fashion and luxury,” Costa concluded.

For the first time the editors, publishers, marketing and advertising managers of all of the editions of Grazia have gathered in Milan for the “Grazia Global Conference”, to discuss the points of strength, targets and the specific language of the various interpretations of the magazine around the world.

The partners include important international media groups of the calibre of Hearst (for Grazia Australia), Bauer (for Grazia UK) and Sanoma (for Grazia Russia).

During the working sessions contributions were also made by a number of representatives of some of the leading luxury brands, such as Diego Della Valle (chairman and chief executive of Tod’s Group), Dominic De Vetta (chief executive of Jo Malone), Francesca Di Carrobbio (chief executive of Hermès Italia) and Matteo di Montezemolo (chief executive of Poltrona Frau).

The “Grazia Global Conference” is consequently for the Mondadori network an occasion to formalise and take advantage of the exchange of experience that for years have driven the various editions of Grazia, providing continuous vigour and strength also to the identity of the Italian “mother” title.

An important opportunity to reflect and discuss ideas and suggestions concerning the guidelines for the “Grazia style”, a unique formula in the magazine sector, able to respond to the different needs of readers and advertisers around the world, and to offer communication opportunities to fashion and luxury brands who choose the Mondadori magazine to reach the most important international markets.

From tomorrow Grazia will be available in China, thanks to cooperation, also on the advertising side, between Mondadori and SEEC Media Group Limited, the group listed on the Hong Kong stock market with which Mondadori had reached an agreement in 2007 for the creation of a 50-50 joint-venture for advertising sales in the magazine sector.

The new magazine, which will be the country’s first glossy fortnightly, will feature original material in Chinese and have a dedicated editorial staff. “We are living in fast times”, underlined the magazine’s editor, Sun Zhe. “Life-changing news stories can gallop past us, delicious gossip flutters and dies in an instant, even hemlines and heels can change overnight”.

The first issue of Grazia will have XX pages, of which XX are advertising: he advertisers featured in the first issue of Grazia magazine include some of the leading brands from the worlds of fashion and beauty, from Tod’s to Trussardi and Guerlain, and from Chanel to Louis Vuitton and Lancôme.

“For Mondadori, Grazia in China marks an important development of the company in the Chinese magazine advertising market,” claimed Roberto Briglia, the general manager of the Mondadori Group’s Magazine Division. “China is one of the most dynamic foreign markets in the world in which fashion, and Made in Italy brands in particular, continue to be widely appreciated,” Briglia continued.

“In this context, a highly innovative magazine with high quality editorial content such as Grazia provides a guarantee for advertisers who want, also in China, to reach a target that is particularly enthusiastic about the world of celebrity, of style, fashion, shopping and luxury, with a vehicle that has a strong appeal,” concluded Briglia.

“The launch of Grazia is a strategic move of SEEC Media, in terms of its continuing efforts on diversification of its own products portfolio”, claimed Mr. Wang Boming, chairman of SEEC Media Group. “We will keep on bringing our foreign partners’ experiences and industry knowledge into China’s emerging and promising market”, concluded Wang Boming.

“A new target is emerging in China”, continued said Sun Zhe magazine’s editor in chief. “She needs to know about the latest trends and news, also regarding celebrities, but she wants it easy, bite-sized pieces – and she doesn’t want to wait a whole month”.

“So here Grazia, China’s first fortnightly glossy news and style magazine that brings her the sophistication of a monthly and the speed of a weekly”, he concluded.

Grazia will be distributed mainly in China’s major cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong.

The launch of the first issue will be supported by an intense outdoor advertising campaign, at railway stations and at newsstands, with maxi-posters and a range of promotional events also planned.

From this month Casaviva, the Mondadori monthly dedicated to interior design, is also present in India. The first Italian interior design magazine published in the country, Casaviva India is the result of a licensing agreement with Media Transasia Ltd, one of India’s leading magazine publishers with branches throughout Asia and an extremely diversified product portfolio including both magazines and coffee table books.

In line with Mondadori’s strategy to promote made in Italy excellence throughout the world through the style and quality of its magazines, after the successful launches in Thailand, Greece, Bulgaria and Serbia, the new international edition of Casaviva is now spokesman for the most innovative trends in the “culture of living” and the latest news of Italian interior design products in India as well.

“Casaviva is a luxury magazine focussing on the home” says the magazine’s editor-in-chief, Anubah Charan. “Thanks to the contribution of a team of interior design and fashion professionals, we have created a top of the range product which, helped by the high technical quality and large format, is positioned in a market segment with great appeal throughout the world and in India in particular”, concluded Charan.

With a circulation of 100,000 copies distributed in the main metropolitan areas of the country including Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata and Madras, the monthly is aimed at mainly female readers aged between 20 and 45, enthusiasts and professionals interested in the evolution of trends and choosing the best products to decorate and furnish the home.

Casaviva, the Mondadori monthly dedicated to interior design and Italian homes, is today also present in Serbia, published under licence by Attica Media Serbia.

The new monthly will be presented to international sector operators during the 46th “International Fair of Furniture, Equipment and Interior Decoration” (UFI) to take place in Belgrade between 10 and 16 November.

The launch of Casaviva Serbia is also being backed by a campaign with TV adverts, posters in the main Serbian cities and a series of events in some of the city’s principal locations.

The magazine, with an initial print run of 50,000 copies, will be sold at a launch price of 99 dinars (about €1.25).

This new international edition of the Mondadori magazine further consolidates the Group’s position in the Balkans and Eastern Europe. Mondadori is present with Grazia, Casaviva, Grazia Casa and Sale&Pepe in Bulgaria, Greece, Serbia, Croatia and Romania. There are now a total of 19 editions in the international network of Mondadori magazines.