Cosmopolitan is a extremely popular magazine with a current circulation of 483,000 the magazine comes out monthly but they also keep followers up to date around the clock with there website which is very interactive for readers and gives you the opportunity to comment, vote and even buy products. They also stay connected through social media. Having followed them on Instagram and twitter they post regular updates on upcoming issues, fashion, make up and celebrities. Cosmopolitan is currently distributed in over 100 countries.
Working in the fashion and media make up industry I think its really important to know what magazines offer as they are a great source of inspiration as well as a way to stay up to date on key trends on make up and hair. Also looking at the History of some magazines can be really useful, vintage front covers are great for learning old trends and styles.
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| Cosmopolitan 1896.7 |
Cosmopolitan Magazine actually started in America in 1886 by the publishers Schlicht & Field. When researching on the history of the magazine its clear that the aim of the magazine has actually changed a number of times. In the first copy of The Cosmopolitan, founder Paul Schlicht's mentioned to readers that this magazine was a 'First class family magazine' the magazine had articles on household decoration, cooking, childcare as well as 'a department devoted exclusively to the interests of women'1 This is quite similar to the current Cosmopolitan magazine although I feel now the magazine is solely devoted to the interests of women. Under the management of Schlicht & Field Cosmopolitan is said to have a 'circulation of 25,000'2 this does not sound a lot in todays terms however I do personally think this is a great amount since magazines were up and coming in the late victorian era.
In 1888 John Brisben Walker, a previous employee of Harpers Monthly came to take over Cosmopolitan.3 This was when The Cosmopolitan was turned into a literary magazine. Very different from Todays Cosmopolitan. The magazine had serial fiction, book reviews, illustrations. Circulation is said to have tripled in four years giving John Walker the opportunity to purchase Cosmopolitan which he did. By 1892 the magazines circulation shot up to a whopping 75,000.4
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| Cosmopolitan June 1929 - Under ownership of Hearst.6 |
From this point cosmopolitan continued to grow and grow with a number of different owners taking over. The magazine remained predominantly a literary magazine right up until 1951 when the then current owner William Rudolph Hearst past away. After his death the magazine was taken over by Helen Gurley Brown and changed from a literary and political magazine to a 'general women's publication' with articles on sensitive subjects such as birth control, affairs and personal relationships.5 This is the beginning of Cosmopolitan as we know it today. In the book I have been reading of The Improbable First Century of Cosmopolitan Magazine its said that Helen Gurley's vision was "to serve career women in the 20's and 30's by writing openly"
soon the cover started to show young models with less clothing and 'celebrities'.
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| Cosmopolitan 1958.8 |
Cosmopolitan today February 2015 issue
Looking at the front cover only of February 2015's issue sex and relationships are mentioned three times the magazine is completely different to when it first started. The history of the magazine is so diverse in comparison to other magazines which have remained the same since day one.
Much like Cosmopolitan in the late 50s under the management of Helen Gurley Brown Cosmoplitan is still very much aimed at women in there 20s and 30s and I would even go as far as to say that cosmopolitan is now readable by women in there 40s plus too.
For one thing the celebrities in this months issue and previous ones are relevant for these ages. Unlike some teen magazines were most of the famous people will be of a young age Cosmopolitan features people like the Kardashian's to respected and older celebrities such as Meryl Streep. Not only because of this I do have friends and family in there 40's who are regular readers of Cosmopolitan
The advertising is also relevant from this type of range of age. When I read it Im always looking at the clothing and finding inspiration from new make up and hair products however there are some adverts that are not aimed at people my age in there 20's for example when I turned the page I did see advertisement for issues such as bladder control and anti ageing for example which are directly aiming at an older audience. Although I do feel that the majority of the magazine is mostly appealable for women through there 20s and 30s. Cosmopolitan does in fact state that they are 'The worlds most successful magazine for young women aged 18 to 34'8
Cosmopolitan Magazine has a very strong fashion influence that I feel is reasonable for a very wide spectrum. They show some really great items for sale at a choice of different prices. I think they understand we can't all afford items straight off the cat walk so some great options are available at lower cost retailers. For example on one page they advertise under ware ranging from 100 to 350 pounds and on the next page they have some very similar options from retailers such as H&M and Marks and Spencer's for a fraction of that price. This makes Cosmopolitan far more appeasable to a much wider audience. We can actually get some great fashion inspiration within our reach from this magazine. In comparison to other high end reads such as Vogue which I can honestly say I look to for the pictures as a source of inspiration to work from as a Make up artist rather then somewhere to shop from. This is what I meant when I said at the beginning we all look to different magazines for different uses!
Bibliography
1.2.3.4 - Landers, J. (2010). The improbable first century of Cosmopolitan magazine. Columbia: University of Missouri Press.
6. http://www.atticpaper.com/proddetail.php?prod=1929-cosmopolitan-magazine-cover-harrison-fisher
7.http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2010/04/26/guest-post-the-evolution-of-cosmopolitan-magazine/
8.http://www.bauer-media.com.au/brands/cosmopolitan/
http://www.bauer-media.com.au/brands/cosmopolitan/
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