How to get fashion magazine sales up

Admittedly it's not just fashion mags that are suffering; women's mags in general are in a slump.

Elle is down 7.3 per cent, Marie Claire down 11.7 per cent, Vogue down 15.1 per cent and O (The Oprah Magazine) is down a whopping 16.4 per cent.
On the other hand, titles such as Esquire, Vanity Fair and inexplicably, Ladies' Home Journal are way up.

But many of the losers are fashion mags. How can this be?

Is it really the economy, stupid? Possibly. When I see a model posing in $2,000 Balenciaga boots, a $5000 Louis Vuitton blouse and a $10,000 bag (I'm looking at you, Hermes) it does not make me feel particularly good about myself and my good ol' Coach bag and Aldo copycat shoes. Perhaps in these hard times, women want to read about what they can afford, not what they can only dream of having. We want some of it to be attainable please! If we can't look like Daria Werbowy, then God damnit we should at least be able to buy the clothes she wears and pretend that we are Daria Werbowy.

Maybe it's the boring covers, which really only cause a controversy in the media, and not in buyer's minds. Take the Vogue "King Kong" cover.
The media, and bloggers (myself included) took up arms and called Anna Wintour a racist for making LeBron James look like a large ape. Too bad the cover was boring. Instead of being provocative like they hoped (Oohh! A black man! Yelling!) it was stale and Gisele looked like a mannequin.
And then there was this.
Gwyneth Paltrow on Vogue's May 2008 cover was a joke. The Photoshop people went overboard with their magic wand and made her look like a Bobble Head. Don't get me started on the helmet hair.
Even British Vogue has more provocative photos. But you want to move issues? Get a new photographer who will do something exciting and new. Nudity wouldn't hurt either; I don't think your readers will be offended because at least it would be different.

And of course, the Web 2.0. The bastard. And bloggers like myself! We're more accessible, attainable, personable (thank you, thank you) and not out of touch with reality!

We North Americans want to see more of this! Snatch!

(Magazine photo source: Gawker)