Fashion magazines (riviste/periodici) can be divided in two main groups: Consumer and Trade Magazines, they feature different information and address distinctive public. The former reports about new fashion trends, publicise, clothing, brands, fabrics, accessories and even beauty products and showcase as well the people who are central in these categories. The latter, on the other hand, keep the professionals of the fashion industry updated on more specific aspects of their work and are also very important for the fashion world, albeit (sebbene/anche se) in a very a distinguishable way.
Consumer Magazines
Consumer Magazines can be bi-annual (semestrale) or monthly publications, they are also called glossies (riviste patinate). Vogue and Elle are the first that come to mind when thinking of such magazines, they present the world of fashion as glamorous and beautiful in every aspect. Then there are weekly magazines, such as Grazia or Look. The main characteristics of such magazines is that they cater to the general public and portray all the most tantalising (stuzzicante/interessante) updates; they have the great ability to keep pace with (tenere il passo) the latest drop (gli ultimi arrivi) in shops, provide gossip about the twists and turns (alti e bassi) in celebrities’ lives and hot off the press (ultime notizie) fashion news.
The structure of consumer magazines is quite different from that of news or business magazines. The table of contents is not at the beginning as in news or business magazines, for example, but it can be even as far as 30 pages into the publication, just as the editorial comment is 70 pages or more into the magazines. There are various sections which are introduced by a “section start page”. The relevant pages regarding news, reviews, topics about culture, arts, events, interviews, columns and opinions are separated by a great number of advertisement (ads) to give the publication a “nice rhythm and flow” as it is described in fashion jargon (gergo).
Typically, consumer magazines have at least two separate fashion editorial teams, stylists and writers collaborating on stories and layout. They work separately and each group focuses on different aspects, such as main fashion shoots, shopping pages, trend reports, special features (l’ultima attrazione) and news and once the magazine is ready they various parts are merged together.
Trade Magazines
Trade and business-to-business (B2B) publications constitute a cornerstone of the magazine publishing industry. They are designed for professionals of the fashion industry and as such contain specialised information such as analysis of statistics, studies on industrial innovation, they present news about the changes in the job market related to fashion, they provide essential information about business and companies’ operations. The content is much more detailed, aimed at giving vital knowledge and facts that often give readers important commercial advantage that is one of the reasons that these publications are quite costly and can be obtained only through subscriptions (sottoscrizioni/abbonamenti) and cannot be bought at newsstands (edicola).
Nevertheless, they do also photoshoots, cover fashion shows (catwalks shows), but their interest is mainly to inform retailers, manufacturers and stylists rather than indulge the consumer. Fashion forecasting is another crucial part of the researches, analysis and reports that such magazines compile by consulting designers, manufacturers. They trace the new trends in styles, fabrics, colours, accessories through careful studies which entail observation, data-cross checking, interviews since such knowledge is crucial for the success of the entire fashion industry.
Some of the most renowned fashion trade magazines include “Women’s Wear Daily” for the US, whereas the leading name for the UK is “Drapers”.
The Lookbook for New Designers
The lookbook is a photographic description of new designers’ work which is a powerful way to promote their work and to showcase (mettere in vetrina) their collection to magazine editors and influential fashion bloggers.
There are vital aspects to consider before beginning this adventure. Who is the lookbook meant for? Is it for a magazine that might give an editorial showing, a retailer who could be interested in selling the line, or for an online business where the visitors might be using a mobile or tablet.
For all these potential buyers it is fundamental to give a lookbook a sleek professional flair. This means that a model, or models to wear the clothing, a professional photographer, a hair and makeup stylist are needed.
Most importantly it is crucial that the team is on the same page (essere d’accordo) that everybody understands the designers’ vision.
© L. R. Capuana
All images are generated by AI
