• by Sara Guaglione , January 17, 2017

American Media Inc. (AMI) has combined the editorial and business staff of Men’s Fitness, Muscle & Fitness, Muscle & Fitness Hers and Flex to create a new group called the Fitness Group.

Sixteen employees were let go as a result of the restructuring.

Men’s Fitness editorial director David Zinczenko did not have his contract renewed, according to a New York Post report. Group publisher David Jackson is also out.

Chris Scardino has been named EVP and group publishing director. He will take over all advertising responsibilities for the group's print and digital. Shawn Perine is now VP and editorial director and will oversee editorial for the Fitness Group.

Scardino told Publishers Daily the formation of the Fitness Group “allows us to provide our partners with a broad array of options, spanning the entire group… Marketers are always looking for a larger audience.”

By combining AMI’s fitness brands under a single umbrella, he noted the company can offer a total print and digital audience of over 50 million. The Fitness Group has nearly 20 million print readers per month and a digital and social audience of more than 32 million across all platforms. Some 71% of the AMI Fitness Group's audience is made up of millennials.

Scardino said AMI’s Fitness Group will focus on building up its digital department to support its digital goals. He added they will not make any additional cuts to print. 

“The AMI Fitness Group mirrors the successful strategic decision we made with our celebrity titles that allowed us to expand our advertising reach, while right sizing our cost structure,” stated AMI CEO and chairman David J. Pecker.