• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, June 16, 2006

Meredith Corporation announced Monday that it has launched a Chinese edition of its giant homemaking lifestyle title Better Homes and Gardens, in partnership with SEEC Media Group Limited, one of China's biggest print media companies. The magazine became available in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore--which has a large ethnic Chinese population--in early June. The magazine will be a mix of American content from the parent magazine and China-specific features and articles.

Like its American forebear, the Chinese edition will target the Chinese middle class, arguably one of the world's fastest-growing and most valuable demographics. According to the government organ, China Daily, the class is composed of people with "stable incomes who are capable of purchasing private houses and cars, and can afford the costs of education and holidays." In 2004, according to the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, about 19 percent of China's population of 1.3 billion belonged to households with total assets worth between $18,137 and $36,275 in U.S. dollars (although some families are quite large). As living standards continue to improve, and renters and owners win greater property rights, China will likely continue to experience a surge in home-improvement spending. John Zieser, Meredith's vice president for corporate development, said: "China is one of the world's most dynamic nations, and we are thrilled to team with SEEC Media, a high-quality publisher, to introduce the Better Homes and Gardens brand to the Chinese consumer and advertising markets. Better Homes and Gardens, the foremost authority on home and family, is uniquely suited to help Chinese consumers live richer and fuller lives, and to serve advertisers wishing to reach this fast-growing market."

AMI to Sell Five Titles, Including Muscle & Fitness

American Media Inc. announced Tuesday it will sell five niche fitness and lifestyle magazines: Muscle & Fitness, Flex, Muscle & Fitness, Hers, Country Weekly, and Mira!, a Latino celebrity book. David Pecker, AMI's chairman and CEO, said the move would allow AMI to focus on its core titles, Star, Shape, and Men's Fitness: "We have decided to explore divestiture options for our five special interest titles. Each of these titles is a leader in its respective category, benefits from strong demographic trends and a stable base of customers and advertisers, and has attractive expansion opportunities." The move comes on the heels of AMI's earlier closing of three titles, Celebrity Weekly, MPH, a car mag, and Shape en Espanol, in an attempt to straighten out AMI's finances. According to Deborah Solomon, senior partner and group research director for MindShare, the closing of some of these magazines spelled hard times ahead for other niche magazines, including men's titles: "What men are reading is car books and computer books, but we've just seen that AMI's car magazine, MPH, which generally targeted young men, is closing. That's not good." Pecker also moved AMI tabloid giant National Enquirer back from New York to Boca Raton, Florida.

AARP's Audience Is Surprisingly Young

Either retirees are growing younger or AARP membership is losing its stigma. According to a recent study from MRI, AARP The Magazine now reaches 13 percent of all U.S. adults after expanding its audience base 2.3 percent to 28.5 million in the first three months of 2006. In this period, the median age of readers dropped to 53, and the 50-59 age segment rose 12 percent in first quarter 2006 versus the same time last year. Overall average income rose to $53,693, and among the 50-59 set it rose to $70,926. Advertisers may be taking note of AARP The Magazine's desirable demo: in the first quarter, ad pages were up 20.6 percent over 2005, with revenue rising 29.3 percent.

Cottage Living Will Open "Idea Home"

Popular niche lifestyle mag Cottage Living announced that it is bringing back its branded "idea home," first introduced last year, in the Evanston suburb of Chicago, known for its rich architectural history and legacy. The idea home will serve as a modeling space for Cottage Living's homey home improvement suggestions, as well as a showcase for favored advertisers. Open July 13-September 3, the idea home will be featured in Cottage Living's October 2006 issue. $10 admission ticket sales will benefit a local Evanston charity, Kids and School Supplies of Evanston.

Baseline Mag Opens 4th ROI Leadership Entries

Business tech mag Baseline announced Monday that it is accepting entries for its 4th annual ROI Leadership Awards, co-sponsored in 2006 by the Hackett Group, a strategic adviser. The awards recognize companies' deployment of new IT systems on the basis of their revenue results. Winners are to be profiled in Baseline's September 2006 issue. Entries must have been deployed January 1st, 2002--December 31st, 2003, and been in use from January 1st, 2004--Dec. 31st, 2005.

CFO Magazine Announces New SVP, Advertising

CFO Magazine announced that Lissa Short has been named senior vice president of advertising, with responsibility for all ad sales in the United States. Kevin Quinlan, CFO's publisher, said she "has been instrumental in building our advertising base, and serves as a brilliant ambassador for CFO." With a total of 16 years of ad experience, before her start at CFO in 1999 Short managed advertising for Treasury & Risk Management.

Chappell New Chief Editor at Vegetarian Times

Mary Margaret Chappell has been named chief editor of Vegetarian Times, according to Active Interest Media, which owns the publication. Chappell joined the magazine as food editor in April after studying cooking in France and working in two New York restaurants. While serving as senior editor of First for Women, Chappell translated a series of French cookbooks. She has also reviewed restaurants for Style Weekly and the Vegetarian Guide to New York. The 30-year-old Vegetarian Times has a circulation of about 220,000.

LaPlaca Exec Editor for Prevention

Prevention magazine has named Barbara LaPlaca executive editor of marketing and creative services, the Rodale-owned publication announced Monday. LaPlaca will assume this role effective Monday, June 26th, working from New York City offices. La Placa previously worked at More magazine as an associate publisher and marketer, helping position the magazine through custom advertising programs.

Correction

In last week's Mag Bag, the item "Blender Leads Music and Men's Lifestyle Mags" contained two errors. First, it incorrectly stated that Blender led its category in audience size. In fact, Blender leads its category in a targeted audience concentration--including male and adult readers--that cuts across four overlapping age demos, 18-34. The item also misidentified MRI, which stands for Mediamark Research Inc.