ShortList to publish first ABCs in February

Mike Soutar has announced that his newly launched freesheet, ShortList, will publish its first set of Audit Bureau of Circulations figures in early February.

The move is intended to demonstrate confidence in the product as he quashes rumours that the magazine is changing publishing dates to go head-on against Sport.

The two-issue-old ShortList, aimed at ABC1 men, comes out on Thursdays, and Soutar says that there are no plans to change that to Fridays, when Sport hits the streets. The first issue launched on September 20.

Soutar says: “The fact that our first possible concurrent ABC figures from the time of the launch to the end of December will come out in the early part of next year proves the confidence we have in our product.”

The former IPC Media executive is not concerned about the fact that the free magazine, distributed by street vendors, has found itself in the hands of women.

He says: “I obviously do not regard women as our target audience – Shortlist is a men’s magazine with a male lifestyle agenda.

“In the early launch phase and during the sampling period, the magazine has obviously generated interest outside its core readership and I do not mind. But that is not to say that we will start including fashion lists in the magazine.”

Soutar adds that there are no plans to cut the number of copies of ShortList being printed. Currently more than 500,000 copies are handed out in cities such as London, Manchester, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

He says: “There is no truth to any of the rumours about us cutting down the number of copies being distributed on the streets.”

The first issue of the magazine attracted eight advertisers, including Adidas and O2. ShortList is backed by film-maker Matthew Vaughan, French Connection founder Stephen Marks and publisher DC Thomson, who have financed the venture with a £7.5m investment.