Hearst Introduces “Freemium” Magazine: TrendingNY

Hearst Magazines is the only major publisher that continues to introduce new print titles and concepts to the market. Always looking to expand its connection with consumers, recent years have seen the debuts of successful brand extensions including Cosmopolitan for Latinas and Town&Country Travel, and popular magazines like Food Network Magazine, HGTV Magazine and Dr. Oz THE GOOD LIFE. This month, Hearst Magazines is entering the “freemium” market with TrendingNY, a New York-centric, millennial-targeted look at fashion, beauty and culture.

The free weekly publication, which debuted in New York yesterday, has four issues total slated for September. Fifty-thousand copies of each issue will be distributed by street teams in millennial-populous areas throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn. Edited by Emily Cronin, a former editor at Harper’s BAZAAR and ELLE U.K., TrendingNY brings readers a fast, fresh look at the hottest things to see, experience and buy in New York City each week.

“Millennial women in New York are constantly on the go—if they see something they like, they want to be able to buy it that day,” says Hearst Magazines Editorial Director Ellen Levine. “We saw a unique opportunity to provide these women with a magazine featuring accessible New York fashion, beauty, pop culture and career news in quick, image-based features that are perfect for the morning commute.”

Each issue of TrendingNY brings readers several one-page reoccurring features. The “Want List” features shoppable items that editors are loving that week, from jewelry to nail design and sneakers, and the “Key Buy” page highlights one on-trend item with options to satisfy every budget.

A beauty section, “Primp,” features quick looks at the best new products and trends. A beauty map in each issue follows an NYC tastemaker around her neighborhood for a hyper-local look at health and beauty destinations: The debut issue features Greenwich Village with New York Fashion Week designer Misha Nonoo—Nolita, the Upper West Side and Cobble Hill will come later this month.

The TrendingNY culture section, “This Week in NY,” is a detachable agenda for the week’s best happenings, from book and album launches to show openings and music events. Each issue also includes a Q&A with a celebrity, a longer feature (the debut issue tackles the matchmaker trend) and a fashion cover story.

“TrendingNY is a product that is exciting, aspirational, energetic and accessible,” Cronin says. “We are putting the magazine directly into the hands of our target demographic, and I think once they get it, they are going to love and anticipate it every week.”

Contributors to the magazine include Aliza Licht, senior vice president of global communications at Donna Karan International, and P.S. I Made This founder Erica Domesek. Aliza answers readers’ career questions, submitted on social media with #AskAliza, and Erica shares style-focused DIY projects.

The first issue of TrendingNY features advertisements from major retailers including Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s, as well as specialty retailers, and beauty and fashion companies.

“Hearst has such a strong position in the beauty retail space that we are always thinking about new ways to expand our reach to those consumers,” says Hearst Magazines President, Marketing and Publishing Director Michael Clinton. “We saw great advertising support for the first issue—retailers want to sell products now and our target demographic is eager to buy what’s on the shelves today, not two months down the line.”

TrendingNY was designed in partnership with New York design company Priest + Grace at the suggestion of Hearst Magazines Vice President of Talent Acquisition Eliot Kaplan, who was also instrumental in bringing Cronin on board. Priest + Grace has worked with Hearst brands in the past, and its range of design capabilities made the company a perfect partner for TrendingNY.

Readers can find out more about TrendingNY pickup locations, connect with editors and contributors and provide feedback on Twitter and Instagram @TrendingNY.

By Abigail Alderman, Hearst Corporation