A brief timeline of magazines (particularly to do with fashion)-
1600s- could be considered the first magazine, The Treasure Hidden Secrets, received information on important events of the Elizabethan era, such as the plague This content shifted to women's diaries, gazelles or pocket pamphlets with a primarily female audience during the reign of Queen Anne
1643- under Louis XIV of France, magazines began to feature illustrate sketches of fashion pieces
1672- Le Mercure Galant was first published. Founded by Jean Donneau, the gazette featured news about fashion, luxury goods and court life under Louis XIV
1731- the first publication to use the term 'Magazine' was founded in London by Edward Cave in 1731. It was called Gentleman's magazine and featured articles on literature, politics, and current affairs
1867- Harper's Bazaar was published as "a repository of fashion, pleasure, and instruction". It was one of the first magazine’s dedicated to look at women’s lives through the lens of fashion
1886- first issue of Cosmopolitan was published in New York City in March by Schlicht and Field originally began as a “first-class family magazine”, with a “a department devoted exclusively to the concerns of women, with articles on fashions”
1890- in the late 19th century, printing technology allowed for the mass production of magazines in order to reach mass audiences. This, in turn, caused the rise of popular magazines such as The Strand magazine and Harper's weekly
1892- Vogue first published on December 17th 1892 by Arthur Baldwin Turnure. It focused on the New York upper class, their habits, leisure activities, places they frequented, and the clothing they wore.
1921- a publication directed principally at international buyers of luxury fashion, L’Officiel was launched as a Parisian trade magazine
1923- the Time magazine was founded by Henry Luce and Briton Hayden. It featured in depth reporting and analysis of events which has led to it still being a prominent publication in the industry
1933- the first issue of Newsweek was published and it quickly gained a reputation for its in-depth reporting and content
1937- Marie Claire was founded as the first modern women’s fashion magazine that appealed a diverse female audience. It covered fashion and beauty, but it also wrote on more serious and provocative topics.
1939- a high-end, glossy magazine focused on the lives of Hollywood celebrities was launched under the name ‘Glamour of Hollywood”
1943- Glamour of Hollywood rebranded to Glamour
1945- Elle was launched by Hélène Gordon-Lazareff with a focus on fashion, beauty and lifestyle but also with the intent to encourage and empower women
1953- the playboy magazine was launched by Hugh Hefner, quickly becoming one of the most popular men's magazines in the world
1977- People magazine was first published with a focus on soft news such as celebrity news, human interest stories and popular culture.
2001- the digital revolution of the magazine industry caused by the rise of the internet in the early 2000s led to shift for many publications to include a digital format, thus widening their reach
contemporary context-
The most influential style magazines of today are as follows-
ELLE - with 33 million readers worldwide
VOGUE - with 22.5 million readers worldwide
COSMOPOLITAN - with 18.2 million readers worldwide
HARPER'S BAZAAR - with 15 million readers worldwide
with honourable mentions to-
VANITY FAIR - with 2.7 million readers
GLAMOUR - with 1.4 million readers
The United States owns $791.9 million worth of the market share in the fashion magazine industry as of 2025, making it the top player of style magazines.
The main mass media companies in the fashion industry are-
HEARST COMMUNICATIONS-
owns 260 magazine brands globally
is active in 40 markets around the world
As of 2022, expected $12 billion in revenue for the year
most notably owns the Cosmopolitan and Esquire
CONDÉ NAST-
owns 8 US publications and 12 digital assets
attracts over 1 billion users across print
is active in 32 markets across the world
As of 2022, expected $2 billion in revenue for the year
most notably owns Vogue, GQ, Glamour and Vanity Fair
Finance, distribution and exchange of magazine products-
Publishing houses play a pivotal role in the creation and distribution of magazines. They coordinate the development of content, design, production, printing and distribution. They are also responsible for the commercial viability of a magazine, focusing on marketing, sales, advertising revenue, subscription management and reader engagement strategies. So what actually is a publishing house? Publishing houses are businesses which operate in publishing, handling the entire process of production and distribution of printed materials such as, books, newspapers and magazines. A typical publishing house is structured into various departments such as editorial, design, production, marketing and sales.
As technology has advanced, so has the magazine industry. Many publishing houses now produce digital versions of their print products to be easily accessible to an online readership. Many in the industry have had to rethink their strategies, now relying on advertising revenue and subscription fees as opposed to traditional newsstand sales due to digital convergence.
