Women's glossies get real

A move away from using models has found favour with readers of women's magazines, but editors won't be tearing up their contacts books just yet, writes Anna Carey

IF YOU GO down to your local newsagents, you'll be greeted by a row of shiny celebrities on the magazine rack. Cheryl Cole peeps out from the cover of Vogue, Gemma Arterton smoulders from Glamour. But one glossy magazine stands out from the crowd. The front cover of Essentialsmagazine's October issue features three of its readers, women with ordinary jobs whose ages range from 34 to 43. From now on, Essentialswill no longer feature models or celebrities on its cover. Instead, it will feature readers – women of all ages and body types.

"We have a lot of interaction with our readers and they're always saying they like the magazine because it's realistic and relevant to their lives," says Essentialseditor Jules Barton-Breck. "We did a survey, to which nearly 5,000 woman responded, and more than 70 per cent said they would rather see 'real' women – I hate that phrase – on the cover. There were other statistics that showed they are more inspired by ordinary women than by celebs. So we thought it would be a good idea to celebrate our readers."

Although the October issue of Essentialsis model-free – readers appear in the fashion and beauty shoots – models will be back in the magazine next month, but not on the cover. Barton-Breck stresses it's not taking "an anti-model or anti-celeb stance. We just wanted to give women more choice, to differentiate us from other magazines, and to play to our strengths. Our readers are generally upbeat and content and we always encourage them to celebrate what they've got rather than strive to be a certain way."

Another mainstream glossy has gone even further. Since the beginning of this year, Brigitte, Germany's biggest women's magazine, has banned models from its pages entirely, saying it was time to show that "attractiveness has nothing to do with supposed . . . beauty ideals, but with personality, radiance, life".

The response from readers has been generally positive, but not everyone was impressed. Some pointed out that nearly all the women were still young, slim and pretty, even if they weren’t models. In fact, some said the “real” women made them feel worse than the models ever did. “The women [in the shoots] don’t just represent beauty and thinness anymore,” 36-year-old Bettina Eberleh told the magazine. “Now they have names and careers and sometimes children — and they still look so good. That puts me under pressure.”

Of course, aspirational titles such as Vogueand Elle, magazines that consciously sell a fantasy, will never abandon models. Jane McDonnell, publisher of Glossmagazine which is distributed with The Irish Times, can't imagine a totally model-free world. "There will always be a role for professional models," she says. "They work very hard and they're trained to do their job."

In fact, working with non-models is harder, not least because shoots take much longer when you’re photographing amateurs. And they’re expensive. “My budget tripled,” says Barton-Breck. “We have to shop for the clothes because samples aren’t available in bigger sizes; we have to cover the readers’ travel and accommodation.”

Although she respects models’ work, McDonnell believes the fashion industry has to change. “There’s a need to set healthier standards after the rail-thin girls we’ve seen over the past few years. . . It’s a question of balance,” she says. “We focus on real women in other aspects of the magazine. We like to show women with strong identities, women who are running a business or who are mothers or sports people.”

She points out that it’s in the interest of the fashion industry to show that not only models can look good, as international fashion brand LK Bennett appreciates. It’s looking for an Irish businesswoman to front its ad campaign. “They’re aware that it’s an effective way to reach consumers.”

Will models and celebs continue to dominate the newsstands? Probably, but the response to the move by Essentialshas been "phenomenal," says Barton-Breck. "We're really pleased and the readers are thrilled. . . It's not just about size, shape or age. It's about seeing women going about their everyday lives and being good at that."