Weekly magazines will have breathed a sigh of relief over the latest circulation figures, faring relatively well compared to most other categories.
Famous and New Idea and showed positive circulation growth in 2011’s fourth quarter, however experienced a decline in year-on-year figures. OK! experienced very positive results, showing 4.1 per cent growth in Q4, and a 4.6 per cent growth rate over the whole year. Who magazine posted it's fifth consecutive POP increase, with the celebrity weekly mag growing 0.8% over the year.
Women’s monthlies were some of the hardest hit by the results, with Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar and Shop Til You Drop all falling in circulation figures from December 2010 to December 2011. Teen magazines Dolly and Girlfriend also saw a drop in numbers, falling by 12.4 per cent and 11.1 per cent respectively, during 2011.
The health category is still faring well, with Women’s Health still reaching 90,000+ in circulation. ACP’s equivalent, Good Health was one of the few magazines to experience year on year growth, with circ figures increasing 10.4 per cent from December 2010 to December 2011.
Food and entertaining titles also remained strong, still feeling the masterchef effect, however year on year, the category dropped 10.3 per cent in circ figures.
