One might think of bridal magazines as a staid category of magazines, and very niche, led by the big national titles Bride's and Modern Bride, but in fact the bridal category is seeing explosive growth, indeed the fastest growth of any category. The number of titles has nearly doubled in the past five years. And this at a time when many of the major magazine categories are seeing titles closing. Why the explosion in new titles? Good question. For the answer Media Life turned to Trish Hagood, president of Oxbridge Communications, publisher of the National Directory of Magazines and MediaFinder.com. Hagood talks about why the growth, which niches are growing the most, and who's reading all these new titles.

 

How many bridal magazines are there?

 

There were 135 bridal magazines in 2007, up from 69 in 2002. 

 

Why is this category of titles so hot right now?

 

The growth in bridal magazines goes hand-in-hand with the nesting trend, as seen in the growth of home and interior design magazines. 

There also seems to be a fascination with celebrities, their marriages and un-marriages, and their babies.


How many of these bridal titles are local and regional? Is localization an important trend?

 

Yes, many of these bridal titles are regional. For example, there is Bride's Boston, Island Weddings, Nantucket Weddings and Hawaii Bride and Groom. Localization is the most important trend.

Are the bulk of readers those planning on getting married, or are there a good number also just interested in new wedding trends?

 

Readers of bridal magazines include those planning to get married and those interested in wedding trends.   It includes not only those getting married and fantasizing about it, but all those vendors to the industry.

And don't forget the parents.

 

Are all of these magazines targeted at women, or is there an emerging trend toward targeting grooms as well?

New bridal magazines are even targeting men, such as a new title called Groom.



What are some of the key differences between the major titles in the bridal category?

 

They are becoming increasingly specialized, targeting ethnic groups, celebrity weddings and even men, as mentioned earlier.

 

To what do you attribute the growth among bridal titles?

Trends come and go, but people are always going to get married. And because of the high divorce rate there are even more marriages at all ages.

What role does the internet play for bridal titles, and how has it changed over the past 10 years?

 

Were there internet bridal sites 10 years ago? Internet bridal sites today can connect bridal customers directly to the vendors and to a community of prospective brides and grooms.

 

At the same time, however, this is a category ideally suited to magazines -- lush photos -- and magazines can be easily carried to the wedding shops: gowns, caterers, beauty salons.

 

Can you describe the typical reader of a bridal magazine?

 

The readership profiles vary, but most bridal magazines list readership median ages and incomes for both men and women. Some generic’ brides magazines have household incomes of $50,000 and age of 31.

A title such as Elegant Bride has an annual household income of $99,500 and a median age of 38.

  

What do you see happening to the bridal category of magazine in the next, say, five years? Is there room for more growth, or will some of the smaller titles start to fall off?

 

Although some growth has probably been linked to the housing bubble, and there may have been some fall-off with the bursting of that bubble, people will always be getting married. And, there are still more niches to be filled.