Elle Seeks More Airtime
By Lucia Moses
Sunday, January 11 2009
Sunday, January 11 2009
Published on AllBusiness.com
When it launched in October, The CW’s Stylista seemed to have a lot going for it. Blending the popularity of The Devil Wears Prada with the reality TV show format, Stylista took viewers behind the scenes at Elle magazine, where desperate young contestants toiled to win a staff position there.
It had the further advantages of following CW hit America’s Next Top Model in the 9 p.m. Wednesday timeslot. For Elle, the hope was to replace the buzz and exposure it got out of its longtime partnership with Bravo’s popular show Project Runway, which the Hachette Filipacchi Media title lost last year when Runway judge and Elle fashion director Nina Garcia left the magazine.
But Elle didn’t get the bang it wished for. For its eight-episode run, which ended Dec. 17, Stylista averaged 1.7 million viewers, a 60 percent drop from lead-in Top Model, which reached an average 4.3 million viewers in fall 2008, according to Nielsen data. Stylista “had a little bit more audience erosion than we would have liked, which was somewhat disappointing,” said CW representative Paul McGuire. An Elle rep noted that the show’s branding opportunity exceeded its expectations.
But with a second season of Stylista still up in the air, Elle is in the hunt for its next brand-building opportunity. The title has hired Hollywood talent agency Creative Artists Agency to help create new TV shows that Elle can own and integrate into its sales offerings. Elle also is hoping CAA will push the magazine’s brand into motion pictures.
Few magazines have successfully transplanted their brands to commercial TV. The most notable recent effort, from Time Inc.’s Real Simple, fell flat in the ratings; Real Simple and partner Discovery Communications’ TLC network are looking to tweak the reality lifestyle makeover show, called Real Simple. Real Life.
Hearst Magazines’ Marie Claire, meanwhile, which snagged Garcia, hasn’t quite gotten the full benefit of her presence yet. Project Runway remains tied up in court over a dispute between Bravo parent NBC Universal and the show’s creators, The Weinstein Co., over the show’s planned move to Lifetime. While it waits for that to be resolved, Marie Claire is readying for the March 1 debut of Running in Heels, on Comcast’s Style Network. The show, billed as a “docu-series,” is a behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of a fashion magazine, with each episode focusing on the trials and tribulations of a different employee.
It had the further advantages of following CW hit America’s Next Top Model in the 9 p.m. Wednesday timeslot. For Elle, the hope was to replace the buzz and exposure it got out of its longtime partnership with Bravo’s popular show Project Runway, which the Hachette Filipacchi Media title lost last year when Runway judge and Elle fashion director Nina Garcia left the magazine.
But Elle didn’t get the bang it wished for. For its eight-episode run, which ended Dec. 17, Stylista averaged 1.7 million viewers, a 60 percent drop from lead-in Top Model, which reached an average 4.3 million viewers in fall 2008, according to Nielsen data. Stylista “had a little bit more audience erosion than we would have liked, which was somewhat disappointing,” said CW representative Paul McGuire. An Elle rep noted that the show’s branding opportunity exceeded its expectations.
But with a second season of Stylista still up in the air, Elle is in the hunt for its next brand-building opportunity. The title has hired Hollywood talent agency Creative Artists Agency to help create new TV shows that Elle can own and integrate into its sales offerings. Elle also is hoping CAA will push the magazine’s brand into motion pictures.
Few magazines have successfully transplanted their brands to commercial TV. The most notable recent effort, from Time Inc.’s Real Simple, fell flat in the ratings; Real Simple and partner Discovery Communications’ TLC network are looking to tweak the reality lifestyle makeover show, called Real Simple. Real Life.
Hearst Magazines’ Marie Claire, meanwhile, which snagged Garcia, hasn’t quite gotten the full benefit of her presence yet. Project Runway remains tied up in court over a dispute between Bravo parent NBC Universal and the show’s creators, The Weinstein Co., over the show’s planned move to Lifetime. While it waits for that to be resolved, Marie Claire is readying for the March 1 debut of Running in Heels, on Comcast’s Style Network. The show, billed as a “docu-series,” is a behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of a fashion magazine, with each episode focusing on the trials and tribulations of a different employee.
