Mag Sales Latest Show Hike for Homes and Interiors Scotland

A Scottish glossy magazine devoted to homes and interiors has seen its sales rise over the last 12 months, according to circulation figures published this afternoon.

Glasgow-based, bi-monthly magazine, Homes and Interiors Scotland, has seen its average sale rise three per cent these last six months and an impressive 15.1 per cent, year-on-year, to some 11,284 – according to the Audit Bureau of Circulation.

Meanwhile, it was a mixed bag of results for the collection of magazines and comics produced by Dundee-based publishers, DC Thomson.

For instance, The BeanoMAX and The Dandy both experienced heavy year-on-year circulation losses, down 31.7 per cent and 29.6 per cent respectively, the ABC figures covering the period from June last year to two months ago.

That said, The BeanoMAX registered a 5.3 per cent increase – up from 27,602 to 29,067 – between December last year and June.

Elsewhere, the year-on-year sales figures for the Sunday Post publisher are: Animals and You (27,241, up 19 per cent), The Beano (46,656, down 13.5 per cent), Goodie Bag Mag (36,838, up 5.6 per cent), My Weekly (134,393, down 7.7 per cent), People’s Friend (291,394, down 7.1 per cent), Scots Magazine (30,975, down 10.7 per cent), Shout (64,007, down 16.4 per cent), Weekly News (50,063, down 11.7 per cent), and Children’s Entertainment Package – Boys (90,078, down 23 per cent) and Girls (107,977, up 16.6 per cent).

Meantime, sales of the Times Educational Supplement Scotland have seen a modest increase of 1.1 per cent in twelve months, rising from 6,277 last June to 6,348 this year. Between December 31 and June 30, however, the publication for primary, secondary and further education recorded a six per cent rise.

Elsewhere, free weekly business newspaper, Business 7, received a six-month sales boost, climbing 1.8 per cent – from 20,018 to 20,370 – between December and June, while lifestyle and careers magazine, Source, enjoyed an 11.3 per cent rise on December last year.

In terms of UK-wide consumer magazines, the industry’s trade body, the Periodical Publishers Association, today hailed an overall sales increase of 0.3 per cent in the space of twelve months.

Says Barry McIlheney, chief executive of the PPA: “This is an encouraging set of results that reaffirms the popularity of magazines among consumers.

“Through continued innovation, magazines' have shown their ability to really engage readers and provide a powerful platform for advertisers.”

Absent from the report are figures relating to the likes of The List, The Skinny, TGO, Life and Work, Big Issue Scotland and Scottish Field magazines.