Bottom falls out of lads' mag sector, ABCs expected to show

LONDON - FHM and Loaded, the magazines that defined the lads¹ generation in the mid-1990s, are set to reveal further steep falls in news-stand circulations in the upcoming ABCs.

Both are expected to have shed a quarter of their UK news-stand sales in the six months from July to December 2008, due out on 12 February.

Bauer¹s FHM, which sold 775,000 copies a month at its peak in 1998, sold an average of about 180,000 a month on UK news-stands during the latest ABC period, a fall of about 28% year on year and 13% period on period.

IPC-owned Loaded is expected to have lost about 25% of its UK newsstand sales year on year, and 10% period on period, to sell an average of about 68,000 copies.

Mark Gallagher, head of press at Manning Gottlieb OMD, said: "The bottom has fallen out of the market and we will see casualties. There is a further polarisation between traditional lads¹ titles and niche and more upmarket titles. But the sector is still relatively healthy, because of number of copies sold.

Bauer¹s more upmarket Arena is expected to be down around 25% year on year, and 14% period on period, and is selling fewer than 15,000 on UK news-stands.

While overall men¹s lifestyle ABC figures will be boosted by subscription and bulk sales, Dennis¹ Maxim is expected to suffer another horrific ABC figure, predicted to be down nearly 58% year on year and 35% period on period, selling an average of 20,000 copies a month.

Paul Thomas, head of press at Mindshare, said: ³While these titles are not dead, the market has hit the bottom. There will come a point when publishers look to kill them off.² Dennis is obliged to publish Maxim under licence in the UK until 2012, following the sale of the magazine to US private equity group Quadrangle in July 2007

Dennis was unavailable for comment as Media Week went to press. NatMags, IPC, Condé Nast and Bauer declined to comment.

MediaWeek
3rd February