by Herman Manson (@marklives) The Audit Bureau of Circulations of South Africa has released consumer-magazine circulation statistics for the period April–June 2018 (ABC Q2 2018); see our newspaper analysis here.
Magazine overview
- Total magazine circulation declined by 3.9% on the previous quarter, and by 15.1% on the prior year
- Consumer magazines decreased by 6.2% on the previous quarter, and by 11.5% on the prior year
- B2B Magazines declined by 2.8%on the previous quarter, and by 5.1% on the prior year
- Custom Magazines declined by 1.7% on the prior quarter, and by 20.5% on the prior year
- Free magazines declined by 4.2% on the prior quarter, and by 10% on the prior year
The business press
Financial Mail is down -1.30% in the corresponding previous reporting period. Forbes Africa has fallen by -22.11%. Finweek has declined by -4.49% year on year.
Your Business Magazine has declined by -19.16%. Noseweek has inched down by -0.28%. Landbouweekblad has fallen by -14.79% and Farmer’s Weekly has declined by -6.98%.
Entrepreneur is bucking the trend and has increased by 1.28%.
Biggest-circulating business magazines in terms of total circulation
Finweek: 17 188
Forbes Africa: 14 915 +1
Entrepreneur: 14 883 -1
Financial Mail: 13 080
Noseweek: 11 940
Your Business: 7 572
Position movement relative to Q1 2018.
Entertainment & celeb news
Drum has collapsed by -28.59%. TV Plus (Afrikaans) is down -20.02% and the English edition has fallen by -36.06%. Bona is down -12.18%. Huisgenoot has fallen -5.14%; and YOU has fallen -6.55%. The Big Issue is down by -13.80%.
Home & gardening, leisure
House and Leisure is leading the fallists in this sector with a -34.72% decline. Condé Nast House & Garden is down -20.40%; Food & Home Entertaining -20.36%; SA Home Owner -16.12%, and SA Garden and Home -19.36%.
Tuis Home has jumped by 11.81% and VISI by 10.20%. MyKitchen (TFG) has grown by 15.77%. EasyDIY is up by 12.07% and The Gardener / Die Tuinier has increased by 17.71%. ELLE Decoration is up 15.89%, following a frequency change.
Men’s market
GQ has taken an unclassy tumble that has seen its circulation decline by -33.43% YoY.
Very Interesting has inched down -2.62% from the previous corresponding reporting period, while Men’s Health has fallen by -4.51%.
Popular Mechanics is down by -7.52%; Stuff by -6.02%; and Tech by -9.92%. Destiny Man has changed frequency, and is down by -11.05%.
Hitting the road
TFG Motor is down by -7.17% and SA 4×4 by -15.22%. Leisure Wheels has also bucked the trend, climbing by 7.88%, while CAR has inched up by 1.05%. Speed and Sound has declined by -6.24% and Super Bike by -10.18%.
Weg!/Go! has grown by 6.10% but Getaway has inched down by -2.80%, with SA Country Life declining by -11.31%. Weg!/Go! Platteland has fallen by -10.86%.
Woman’s general
Marie Claire has dropped by -36.75%; Your Family by -30.24% and Essentials by -28.35%. Good Housekeeping/Goeie Huishouding has declined by -20.90%. Cosmo is down by -11.28% (will it fall below 30k soon? Current ABC: 30 745)
Move! has fallen by -16.78%. Vroue Keur has dropped by -13.34%. Woman and Home is down by -18.20%.
Kuier has declined by -10.35%, Rooi Rose by -15.59% and Essentials by -28.35%.
Fair Lady has fallen by -0.81% and Destiny Magazine by -5.52%. Women’s Health has decreased by -9.33%.
The only upside in this category is True Love, up 10.54%, and Elle, up 38.34% (free magazines = 7 644 out of 22 403). Sarie has also inched up by 1.41%.
Finesse resigned.
The MarkLives’ Big Magazine list*
Q2 2018
- Huisgenoot: 186 658
- Sports Club (TFG): 148 093
- Kids Super Club (TFG): 116 989
- MyKitchen (TFG): 108 478
- YOU: 96 248
- Tuis/Home: 83 532 +1
- Kuier: 88 523 -1
- Taalgenoot: 69 111 new entry
- Sarie: 65 439 -1
- Foschini Living Space: 64 798 new entry
CAR: 64 614
Woman and Home: 62 919 falls out of Top 10
Move!: 59 944
Bona: 59 614
*By total circulation. Must have a cover price. Annuals excluded. Movement on the Big Magazine list compared to Q1 2018 data.
See also
Herman Manson (@marklives) is the founder and editor of MarkLives.com.
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Why percentages now and not ABC figures for all the publications? It makes it a lot harder to know where publications (bar the top 10) are actually sitting relative to one another.