Mindfulness is good for healthy magazine sales

The mindfulness market is here to stay, according to GMC Publications. 

The company has said the market will develop even further over the next few months, offering independent retailers a new product range to capitalise on. 

“GMC Publications helped democratise the concept by launching Breathe, the first regular title to enter the market, in summer 2016,” said the company’s marketing and circulation executive, Anne Guillot. 

“From then on, many similar titles flourished, but contrary to other sectors, what makes these so particular is that subjects are not limited to only food or craft, for example, as mindfulness encompasses many different ideas and practices. 

• Trend for mindfulness magazines continues

“It has never been more important to offer original content and go beyond what readers expect to see.”

The market has changed as awareness of mental health and related issues has grown, while magazines are published following a different kind of business model – as Guillot noted, Breathe carries no advertising. 

“The market is not static, so it will evolve with society, notably as it changes its perception of mental illness, or its tolerance of people’s differences,” she said. 

“It is an exciting challenge, so publishers need to be open-minded and really listen to their readers, because the tables have turned and magazines shouldn’t dictate readers’ behaviour any longer. 

“In fact, a magazine’s purpose has changed remarkably in this sector: they don’t necessarily sell products or promote unrealistic goals anymore – more than entertaining readers, they guide them to feel better. 

“This is why it was essential to launch Teen Breathe in 2017, and yet who would have dared to bring a well-being magazine for children to the market among the toy, fashion and gossip titles a few years ago?”
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