• by Erik Sass , September 3, 2008

Consumer Reports has undergone a full redesign, according to its publisher, the Consumers Union, which hired Pentagram Design to its venerable guide for skeptical consumers a makeover. The redesign is part of a push to raise the profile of the title, which continues to thrive despite the general downturn in the magazine business.

The new graphic look features a simpler color scheme and a crisper, cleaner presentation of art and diagrams. Overall, the new approach could be described as elegant minimalism, simultaneously avoiding clutter and conveying a straightforward sensibility. That's an important element for a magazine that has staked its reputation on being a trustworthy source of information.

The magazine's sections have been reorganized to allow readers to quickly navigate the product category and evaluation data. There is an entirely new section, with updates on popular or big-ticket items, as well as a new Q&A feature.

The ratings have been updated to make them clearer and more accessible, and there are new icon tags for products designated "Best Buys" and "Recommended." Finally, there will be more photos of the product-testing process, reinforcing the themes of transparency and trustworthiness.

Consumer Reports, which does not accept advertising, is something of an anomaly in the magazine business.

According to Consumers Union, since 2002 the magazine has seen its newsstand sales more than double from 83,845 in 2002 to 190,000 in 2008, while subscriptions rose 12% to 4.3 million over the same period.

Consumers Union is trying to build on this success by raising the title's profile and increasing its exposure, especially on the Web. In March 2008, the magazine began advertising its product reviews for the first time, ditching a long-time policy of avoiding media and publicity channels.