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Bauer’s Creme magazine folds–UPDATED

The highest-circulating youth magazine in New Zealand, Creme, is to be no more with Bauer Media announcing today that the final issue will be the September 2014 edition.

Creme’s decline in circulation and advertising revenue means the title is just not profitable.

Publisher Fiona Lyon says in a press release the youth market is one of the most challenging sectors in the industry with increasing numbers of teenagers choosing other platforms over print. “Despite the very best efforts of the Creme team, who have been producing a great magazine each month since its launch in 1999, Creme has fallen short of its commercial expectations and we have decided to close the printed edition.”

Lyon says Bauer will “continue with Creme’s social properties, which have a high level of engagement”. She says Bauer will be monetising these channels via strategic partnerships with advertisers, using the social platforms as a part of an integrated brand campaign across Facebook, Instagram and live events. The Creme Facebook page currently has more than 33,600 likes, and the brand has more than 6500 followers on Twitter.

Bauer bought the magazine from APN last year, as part of a package with New Zealand Woman’s Weekly, The Listener, Simply You, and Simply You Living.

Lyon says “Crème under APN was running at a loss with declining retail sales and advertising revenue. Bauer has grown the advertising revenue for the title but unfortunately this was not enough to sustain a profitable margin.”

Readership figures from Q42013 saw Crème drop from 174,000 to 149,000, with APN’s Girlfriend dropping too from 178,000 to 153,000. The readership figures in Q1 2014 compared with the same time the year before fell from 180,000 to 142,000. Elsewhere in the youth market, Girlfriend also fell from 181,000 to 143,000, Cleo from 142,000 readers to 100,000.

Lyon says the affected Creme staff have all been consulted and “will be investigating redeployment opportunities within the company”.

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