Last week there was a small hubbub about Men’s Health reusing old cover lines. Lots of people criticized the magazine, but the editor-in-chief justified the decisions as “part of overall branding strategies.” A previous EIC said “The Men’s Health cover is a Coke can. It doesn’t change, nor should it. It’s a powerful template created and perfected long ago…” Compared to publications like the New Yorker and Atlantic Monthly, this kind of practice does seem unimaginative. But then again, we’re talking about Men’s Health – it occupies a completely different space. The editors have accepted the magazine for what it is, and they take a conservative route based on what will sell at the newsstand. With that in mind, the repeat cover lines are not at all an oversight; they adhere to a very precise strategy. I can respect that.
Take a look at the cover of the January Good Housekeeping, shot by Andrew Eccles with Big Leo’s own Scott Horne styling the set:
This is the first issue for their 125th anniversary. Brooke agrees, there is lot of history in that one publication – something to be proud of. Mostly the cover sticks to the tried and true formula, but in the Editor’s Letter, EIC Rosemary Ellis talks about how they asked Brooke to recreate a 1961 cover ‘for fun’, which they printed in the table of contents. It was a great idea, and the end result is visually striking and speaks to the history of the magazine.
In each issue this year, the magazine is offering a vintage print of historical covers. I love the old images, especially without the busy cover lines (George Lois interview via). There is something clean and exciting about images with no text. Though I respect the current cover strategy, personally I think that the pink shot would have made a nice cover, just like the one Rosemary said that it referenced. Take a chance!
