Men's mags – once the realm of buxom babes and not much else – are turning their eyes from high-street honeys to health, writes BRIAN O'CONNELL
COULD IT be that the age of the lad mag has ended, undone by the modern man's health and fitness obsession? In recent months, FHM, the bible of blokish culture in the UK, relinquished its lead as the best selling title in the men's magazine world, to be overtaken by Men's Health. As the rise of the metrosexual male continues, modern man is more interested in health and complexion, it seems, than he is in honeys and curves.
In the past year alone, FHMhas lost more than 15 per cent of its readership, selling 235,000 titles a month. In contrast, Men's Healthincreased its circulation to 250,000. Other titles in the lad mag genre also posted losses, with Zoodown 31 per cent and Nutssuffering a 25 per cent drop in readers.
Responding in the rise on demand for their product, Mike Shallcross, deputy editor of Men's Health, said in a recent interview, of the new emerging male reader: "He's young enough to be internet-literate but old enough to appreciate the premium of published over posted content. He either has children, or wants to have them in the future. He doesn't want topless Hollyoaksgirls or expensive cufflinks, but solid actionable advice on health, fitness, career, nutrition, mental health and style."
On the decline of the lad mag, Shallcross put it down to stagnation of the product as much as changing demographics.
“What men want from magazines has changed. Lad mags haven’t really evolved in the last 10 years and it’s difficult to persuade someone in that market to go to a newsagent and part with money for pictures of minor film stars or page 3 girls they can source for free on their laptop without moving from their sofa, or even putting their crisps down.”
So, what of the Irish market and what, if anything, do changing buying trends in the world of men's magazines tell us about men's attitude to their health? Unlike the UK, Ireland does not have a dedicated men's health magazine. Experienced publisher Kevin Kelly attempted to operate a successful men's health magazine in the late 1990s. Entitled Himself, the magazine lasted just a short time before folding. Michael O'Doherty, publisher of VIP magazine, says that most magazines in Ireland are aimed at women, and the fact that the UK market is so robust has meant men's health titles have been slow to launch here.
"There hasn't been a dedicated men's magazine in Ireland for about 10 years," he notes. "The drop in sales of Loadedand other magazines in the UK does not necessarily mean the demographic is changing. There is huge competition in the UK in a tough market at the moment. I think a dedicated Irish men's magazine though would find it hard to compete with the variety and strength of content on offer."
John Mullins, who publishes Easy Health & Livingand is also chairman of Magazine Ireland, says that the "bloke" magazine came from nowhere to enjoy large market share in the past decade. The decline of that sector may have much with the prevailing economic conditions as a more health-conscious reader emerges, Mullins argues.
“A lot of it was driven by a perv factor and the spending power of breakfast roll man,” he says. “These magazines were impulse buys at a time when people had plenty of money to spend. What we are finding now is that men are more discerning about what they buy. They are looking after personal hygiene more and how they look and feel, and magazines which cater for that are holding their own.”
Mullins’s magazine carries a men’s health section within its pages but he says that, primarily, the first people to read it are wives or mothers, who may then pass the information on to the men in their lives. “Traditionally, what we have found is that predominantly women are the guardians of their families’ health. Most men go along with what they are told by their wife or partner. We have a men’s health section pretty much for men, but it has been a case of the wives or partners who buy it, giving it to their other half.” Yet Mullins says there are changes afoot.
“Men are more interested in their health in recent years and will take more responsibility for their own health. It’s not something perhaps that is freely talked about, but men will read and research aspects of their health more. Cancer is a big issue, particularly prostate.
“Also, many men have beer guts and want to know how to get rid of them. We’ve touched upon how to have a healthier sex life and, in a recent issue, how to do sit-ups properly. So we mix the useful with the very important health advice.”
Some would have it that what it means to be masculine in the 21st century has shifted noticeably, with men now better groomed and more health-conscious – and men’s titles are simply reflecting that. Internet dating has resulted in greater focus on image, where men are realising that – shock horror – being overweight and badly groomed may not land them the woman of their dreams.
Mullins, though, doesn’t feel the rise of the more health conscious Irish male will see a dedicated men’s health title hit the shelves here any times soon. Some men are slower to change than others, he argues.
“It’s a very difficult market and, at present, Irish men are very well supplied by international titles. The more health-orientated are looking for more value from their magazines, for more material that ties in with a greater interest in their wellbeing.
"For others though, a men's magazine such as Nutsor Zooremains a five-minute read, and they're only interested in one thing from it really."
