Newsstand Pales

Magazine publishers might well have expected their first-half newsstand numbers to look good compared to last year when wholesaler system snafus interrupted store deliveries, preventing issues from getting to racks.That wasn’t the case, though, as first-half newsstand sales declined 7.7 percent to just over 451 million units, per Magazine Information Network (MagNet), a consolidator of magazine wholesaler data. That’s better than last year’s first-half decline of 12.4 percent, reflecting the delivery problems, but nothing to celebrate about either.Looking at the industry by category, news, auto and entertainment titles were among the hardest hit, with dollar sales all down by double digits. They were partly offset by growth in sports and food titles (where Food Network Magazine topped Rachael Ray as the No. 1 seller at 324,000). The third-quarter outlook is trending down even more versus a year ago when the industry got a boost from strong sales of Michael Jackson–themed special issues.Newsstand sales represent 13 percent of all magazine circulation and are declining as a portion of circ, but they’re still seen as an important yardstick of the industry’s vitality.Part of the decline can be attributable to price increases-—since 2008, the average cover price rose to $4.60 from $4.11. But the economy and consumer behavior are hard to discount. “Magazine sales are being impacted by the economy as well as all of the other competition that exists for consumers’ time and interest,” said Gil Brechtel, president of MagNet.Some titles began rolling out iPad and iPhone editions in the first half, but it will be a while if those editions contribute meaningful volume. Condé Nast, despite being an early mover in selling digital subs, will still report a 12 percent falloff in newsstand sales for the first half. CN president Bob Sauerberg said the decline was expected, given the company raised prices at 10 titles in the past year and pulled copies from low-volume locations. “While we’re not psyched about [the decline], it’s important to note [that] a big part of that is driven by our strategy to drive efficiency and overall profitability,” he said. Overall, CN’s circ will grow almost 1 percent across its 18 titles year over year and has grown 3 percent since Dec. ’07, on growth in online subscription sales.Others blamed retail- and category-specific factors for newsstand declines. “I think it’s very competitive at the front end in terms of having space taken away,” said Dave Ball, vp, consumer marketing for Meredith. As for the women’s category where most of Meredith’s titles play, he said, “I think maybe there’s still oversupply from a consumer’s perspective.” Click here for a top-newsstand magazines chart.

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Newsstand Pales

Lucia Moses

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Lucia Moses