NatMags takes on Glamour with a ‘travel-sized’ Cosmo

The National Magazine Company (NatMags) is taking on rival Condé Nast’s Glamour title, with the launch of a travel-size version of Cosmopolitan for regular travellers and commuters.

The National Magazine Company (NatMags) is taking on rival Condé Nast’s Glamour title, with the launch of a travel-size version of Cosmopolitan for regular travellers and commuters.

The new Cosmo, which will go on sale on September 18, will be tested in WH Smith Travel stores and a few stores in London.

The travel-size edition, which will have a print run of 50,000, will be slightly bigger than A5 and will carry exactly the same content as the normal magazine. The trial is likely to be extended through January and February.

The decision to reduce the size of Cosmopolitan will be seen as a move to stem a decline in the magazine’s circulation. In the last Audit Bureau of Circulations figures, the magazine saw a 1.5 per cent period-on-period drop in circulation, although at 463,058 it remained stable year on year. Glamour reported a 3.3 per cent increase in its circulation, period on period – which represented a year-on-year rise of 23.1 per cent.

NatMags managing director Duncan Edward says: “Nobody owns the travel-size format. Glamour certainly did not invent the format. We are testing the market with the new travel-size Cosmo.”