ELLE UK is one of the world’s leading fashion publications, yet even the much-loved glossy isn’t immune to the changing world of publishing. Long-term editor-in-chief Lorraine Candy believes change is at the heart of staying afloat – a mantra she has followed with the recent revamp of the publication.
Candy – who has held the position for the past 13 years – tells Business Of Fashion the “curated, very sparse, very minimal” make-over of the mag is essential for standing out in the industry. The new layout is minimalist with limited pieces of text on the cover, a determined effort of Candy’s to restore the ‘luxury’ aspect of the mag.
She says: “Reading a magazine is a luxury experience. It’s a lean-back, fully immersive experience and I think that is what you want when you read a print product.” It’s a move she says is not only reflective of changing reader demands for thought-provoking content, but a determination to keep advertisers interested. “We need to service our advertisers much harder than we have ever done before and we wanted to create something that was as beautiful as the campaigns that we were creating… We needed it to stand out amongst the other magazines in the market.”
ELLE’s overhaul comes after the success of sister publication Cosmopolitan. The latter’s refresh saw it climb to a 57.3 per cent yearly increase in sales since its relaunch last year. Cosmopolitan UK is now the highest circulating women’s glossy in the UK.
