News Releases
DES MOINES, Iowa and NEW YORK and SHELBURNE, Vt., Sept. 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Meredith Corporation (NYSE: MDP; www.meredith.com), the leading media and marketing company serving 175 million unduplicated American women and 80 percent of U.S. Millennial women, announced today that it will merge Cooking Light magazine with EatingWell to create the largest high-frequency subscription magazine in the epicurean category under the EatingWell brand. The new circulation rate base will total 1.775 million, a nearly 80 percent increase from EatingWell's current rate base of 1 million.
The new and enhanced EatingWell will launch with the January/February 2019 issue and will be published 10 times per year. It will continue to boast a larger trim size as part of the brand experience.
"Combining the powerful EatingWell and Cooking Light magazines will strengthen our editorial product while providing advertisers with access to this passionate group of consumers seeking a healthier lifestyle," said Carey Witmer, EVP and Group Publisher of the Meredith Food Group. "We believe an enhanced EatingWell best positions Meredith for continuing success and will drive sustainable growth."
EatingWell has been at the forefront of the healthy-eating movement for more than 25 years. Its science-based food and wellness journalism covers a wide range of topics in sync with what consumers want from a food magazine today, including farm-to-table, locally sourced ingredients, and fresh and easy recipes. According to PIB, EatingWell's advertising pages are up more than 10 percent for the year through October, leading the epicurean category in performance during this period.
Witmer and EatingWell Publisher Tiffany Ehasz will manage advertising revenue for the enhanced EatingWell. The editorial team for EatingWell will remain based in Vermont, led by Editor in Chief Jessie Price.
"Consumers today want to eat better and feel good about their food choices. The new EatingWell magazine will combine the best of both brands to reinforce and celebrate how healthy food is now a part of everyday life for a mainstream audience," said Price. "I'm so proud of the work our editorial team has done, and I'm excited to share its top-notch content with even more readers."
Meredith will launch a new Cooking Light special interest newsstand-only title in 2019 that will be published six times per year. EatingWell.com and CookingLight.com will continue to operate as separate destinations with a combined reach of nearly 6 million unduplicated monthly unique visitors. Branded businesses for both Cooking Light and EatingWell, including licensing, bookazines, cookbooks and the Cooking Light Diet, will continue to operate under their current names.
The Birmingham, Alabama, facility will continue to serve as a Meredith hub for food-related content creation and distribution across platforms. The editorial teams of Food & Wine and Southern Living will remain based there under the purview of Editors-in-Chief Hunter Lewis and Sid Evans, respectively.
Represented in the food category with 14 brands addressing the aspirational and practical needs of consumers, Meredith's influential content, utility and immersive experiences drive $2 out of every $3 in food purchases made in store and in the online shopping cart.
ABOUT MEREDITH CORPORATION
Meredith Corporation (NYSE: MDP; meredith.com) has been committed to service journalism for more than 115 years. Today, Meredith uses multiple distribution platforms - including broadcast television, print, digital, mobile and video - to provide consumers with content they desire and to deliver the messages of its advertising and marketing partners.
Meredith's National Media Group reaches more than 175 million unduplicated American consumers every month, including over 80 percent of U.S. millennial women. Meredith is a leader in creating content across media platforms and life stages in key consumer interest areas such as entertainment, food, lifestyle, parenting and home. Meredith is the No. 1 magazine operator in the U.S., and owner of the largest premium content digital network for American consumers. Meredith's leading national brands include PEOPLE, Better Homes & Gardens, InStyle, Allrecipes, REAL SIMPLE, Southern Living and Martha Stewart Living. Meredith also features robust brand licensing activities including more than 3,000 SKUs of branded products at 4,000 Walmart stores across the U.S. and at walmart.com. Meredith's National Media Group also includes leading affinity marketer Synapse, and The Foundry, the company's state-of-the-art creative lab and content studio.
Meredith's Local Media Group includes 17 television stations reaching 11 percent of U.S. households. Meredith's portfolio is concentrated in large, fast-growing markets, with seven stations in the nation's Top 25 markets — including Atlanta, Phoenix, St. Louis and Portland — and 13 in the Top 50. Meredith's stations produce more than 700 hours of local news and entertainment content each week and operate leading local digital destinations. Meredith also owns MNI Targeted Media, which delivers targeted advertising solutions to more than 1,200 clients on a local, regional or national level.
SOURCE Meredith Corporation
