If the media zeitgeist is anything to go by, 2011 is the year of the metrosexual male, with three new titles aimed specifically at this audience launching this year.
ShortList Media, publisher of free magazines ShortList and Stylist, recently announced it will be launching a free, bi-annual men’s fashion magazine in March 2011. The thick-cut, glossy publication, ShortList Mode, has been designed with Shortlist’s ABC1 metro-male readers in mind. “We are living in an ever-changing world in which young men are spending more time and money on the way they look,” says Mike Soutar, Chief Executive of Shortlist Media.
Soutar is not alone in his thinking, as Bauer Publishing, the owner of weekly magazine Grazia, recently piloted Gaz7etta, the male equivalent of its sister publication combined with the traditional kind of content you’d see in men’s monthies.
And that’s not all, because the hugely successful online fashion retailer Net-A-Porter is also preparing its launch of Mr Porter – a partner site dedicated to stylish men and their shopping desires.
In times of apparent tightened purse strings (or wallet strings in this case) these launches could seem a little risky. But not so. According to The Guardian, “many in the industry are confident that style-savvy male consumers have reached a point in their attitude to self-enhancement that their spending on clothes, creams and even cosmetic surgery can be relied upon just as much as their female counterparts.”
Here at E! Towers, we’re looking forward to get our mitts on these exciting new titles and sharing news of our fantastic metro-male friendly clients with them! The ABC team are also busy preparing for the release of the much awaited ABC Consumer Magazine figures, issued on 17th February, which will provide essential insights on, amongst others, these new publications.
We will also be keeping an eye on the fellas in the E! office for any style changes that may occur as a result of this new reading material. Will Chris swap the gilet for a Burberry flying jacket (all the rage right now in the Milan Men’s Fashion Week)? Will Dave shave his beard off again in a bid to stay ‘metro’? Or will Rik wear Salmon because it’s the colour of the season, and not just his surname??
