Canadian magazines enjoyed a 12th consecutive year of advertising revenue growth in 2007, according to new data from Magazines Canada.
The 5.3% increase—to $718 million from $682 million in 2006—marked the industry’s largest increase since a 6.9% jump in 2004. The growth was most pronounced among English-language titles, which saw year-over-year revenues increase 6.5% (revenue for French-language titles increased 1%).
“It’s so satisfying to know that magazines continue to grow year over year over year, and all in the face of the Internet,” said Gary Garland, executive director of advertising services for Magazines Canada in Toronto. “The heavy magazine user and the heavy Internet user are pretty similar, so they seem to find both very important in their life. It’s not like we’re seeing the erosion of magazine reading because of the Internet.”
The report also cites data from Leading National Advertisers indicating that several major advertisers significantly increased their magazine spend in 2007. The runaway leader was Shoppers Drug Mart, which increased its magazine spend by 994%, while other big increases were posted by Cadbury Trebor Allen (a 232% increase), Loblaw Companies (229%), Ontario Tourism (176%) and American Express (174%).
Garland said the list is populated by advertisers who already had a significant presence in magazines, so the figures aren’t skewed by light magazine users who increased their investment in the medium. “We have shied away from someone who was spending three dollars last year and a million dollars this year. This is a true reflection [of industry growth], I think,” said Garland.
The top 100 magazine advertisers increased their 2007 spend by a combined 10% according to LNA, with revenues increasing across a range of product categories including confectionery, snacks and soft drinks (43%), gardening (42%), apparel, footwear and accessories (37%) and industrial materials (36%). Toiletries and toilet goods is the top-ranked magazine advertising category, followed by food and food products, business and consumer services, retail stores and automotive.
City magazines experienced the greatest revenue growth in 2007, 15%, followed by general interest titles (12%), women’s magazines (11%) and gardening magazines (10%). General interest magazines continue to comprise the largest magazine category, with an average issue circulation of 7.8 million. City magazines are second with an average issue circulation of 7.7 million, followed by women’s magazines (6.2 million), TV and radio, and travel and tourism (4.6 million).
There were 1,244 consumer magazines in Canada in 2007, up from 941 at the start of the decade, while circulation reached 72.5 million. “We are one of the most magazine-happy nations in the world,” said Garland. “We’re fifth in terms of magazines available per capita, and if you add (U.S.) spill, we become number one.”
