Feb 20, 2014, New York—American Media, Inc. (AMI) announced today that Consulting Editorial Director David Zinczenko will oversee the brand repositioning and redesign of Muscle & Fitness.
The announcement builds on the extraordinary success that the AMI title Men’s Fitness has experienced since Zinczenko and his company, Galvanized, re-launched the brand as a men’s lifestyle magazine in June, 2013, resulting in a 12% increase in newsstand sales, a 77% increase in display advertising and a 225% increase in unique visitors to MensFitness.com.
“The redesign and repositioning of Muscle & Fitness not only builds on its great heritage, but also reinforces that it is the clear leader in the changing trends in exercise,” said AMI Chairman, President, and CEO David Pecker. “As a new generation of enthusiasts broadens the definition of what fitness is, an extraordinary opportunity exists for us to further establish ourselves as the authority in the space.”
Pecker also announced the appointment of Marne Mayer as art director of Muscle & Fitness. Formerly of ESPN: The Magazine and The Wall Street Journal, Mayer will team with design guru Joe Heroun, who contributed to the dramatic redesign of Men’s Fitness and created the ASME-winning redesign of Women’s Health, to unveil a full redesign with the May 2014 issue. Mayer will report directly to Muscle & Fitness Editor-In-Chief Shawn Perine.
“We’re focused on bringing the Muscle & Fitness brand to a whole new audience, while continuing to serve the interests of our loyal core readers,” said Perine. “By integrating content that addresses a broad range of fitness protocols, including CrossFit, mud runs, bodyweight and suspension training, and the like, we can further establish M&F as the de facto resource for everyone’s training needs.”
Beginning with the April 2014 issue, the brand will introduce a number of editorial changes including a broader range of fitness content and a completely redesigned front of the book that will feature product reviews; columns dedicated to the latest health, science, and technology news; and features on a broader variety of athletes from a wide range of sports. The brand will also make an investment in investigative reporting to deliver groundbreaking stories on the latest issues in health, science, and sports.
About American Media, Inc.
American Media, Inc. (AMI) owns and operates the leading print and digital celebrity and health & fitness media brands in the United States. AMI’s titles include National Enquirer, Star, OK!, Globe, National Examiner, Country Weekly, Soap Opera Digest, Shape, Fit Pregnancy, Natural Health, Men’s Fitness, Muscle & Fitness, Flex and Muscle & Fitness Hers. AMI also manages 18 different digital sites including: RadarOnline.com, OKmagazine.com, CountryWeekly.com, Shape.com, FitPregnancy.com, MensFitness.com and MuscleandFitness.com. AMI’s magazines have a combined total circulation of 7.1+ million and reach more than 60 million men and women each month. AMI’s digital properties reach an average of 31+ million unique visitors and 231+ million page views monthly.