FM to be relaunched with brand-new look

The magazine's editor, Tim Cohen, told Sowetan that the new magazine would be slightly larger, "newsier" and a bit lighter to read.

"The magazine will be slightly bigger and display a wider array of its contents on the cover.

"Though the hard copy is bigger than the current one, the stories are slightly shorter in words," Cohen said.

He said the magazine, which is currently referred to in its abbreviated name FM, will start being called Financial Mail as it attempts to return "to some of its traditional aspects".

"We are aligning the look and feel of the new style to the website, so that it would be much easier to read.

"There are more opinionated voices and this is symbolic of the new approach we are taking," he said.

Cohen said the aim was for the magazine to grow its circulation.

"We want the magazine to be a need-to-have instead of a nice-to-have.

"People should start viewing the magazine as an essential tool for businesses of all kinds," he said.

Some worries and a big leap

Cohen said he was not worried the new look could alienate old readers.

"About 75% of our readers are subscribers, while 25% buy the magazine from the shelves.

"We are, however, worried that the consumers won't recognise the magazine when they first see it."

Cohen said the relaunch and the costs associated with it was a big leap.

"This is a very big jump and we pray that our marketing campaign helps to 'conscientise' readers about the new look," he said.

"The new magazine is slightly more cost effective to produce as the cover and the whole magazine will now be printed at one place instead of different places, which is currently the case."

Source: Sowetan, via I-Net Bridge