• by Larry Dobrow , May 6, 2003

Wal-Mart may have bounced the laddie mags, but it is staying with American Magazine.

With the economy stuck in neutral and the government still contending with a host of geopolitical crises, the mood in the country over the last few months has been decidedly un-nostalgic. Mignonne Wright, however, is betting that readers want an escape from these and other troubles. Her contribution: American Magazine, a bi-monthly publication designed to inspire, inform and energize.

Set to debut in July, American Magazine is not for the cynical. Targeted at family-first women between the ages of 25 and 54 (with a median age of 38), the magazine promises a range of features - many to be written by readers - that celebrate Americana. Think the circa-1950 Saturday Evening Post by way of Family Circle.

Wright, the magazine's editor and publisher, traces the genesis of American Magazine back to May 2001, when she sat down with her since-deceased father to brainstorm ideas for a joint project. "We asked, 'What's missing on the newsstand?'" she recalls. "We discovered this glaring hole. There was nothing on the newsstands that talked about the country from the citizen's point-of-view." To that end, the publication will be divided into ten neat categories: home, travel, money, history, entertainment, family, health, perspectives, culture and heroes.

Bolstering American Magazine's evolution was a deal cemented months ago with Wal-Mart, which signed on as one of the fledgling mag's main outlets for distribution. "Somehow I was able to get the person responsible for magazine buying on the phone," Wright says. "I told him, 'You have quite a bit of control over this industry. I just want your advice about what works.'" After hearing Wright's pitch, the retail behemoth quickly came on board as a distribution partner.

With a rate base of 100,000, American Magazine has been warmly received by advertisers, according to Wright. She adds that the magazine's ad rates will be "10 to 15% less" than other publications with a similar circulation, and that she is targeting institutions like McDonald's and Disney. "My pitch to advertisers is that they'll be proud to see their product in this magazine," she says. "When you're finished reading it, you won't be afraid to spend your money. You won't have read about all the things that could go wrong in the world."

As for the prospect of launching into a difficult economic climate, Wright remains confident. "We have a different philosophy about why we're doing this," she says. "Of course we want to make money, but the day we feel our magazine isn't providing something different for our readers, we'll close our doors. We're going to satisfy our readers, and when we do, the advertisers will follow."