20 more US cities for Trends

David Johnson

Auckland-based Trends Publishing will roll out 20 city-by-city versions of its home and garden magazines in America over the next three years.

Publisher David Johnson said the new series aimed to harness more local-level advertisers and would be produced in addition to the national and regional Trends magazines already sold in the US.

Magazines tailored to Atlanta and Chicago had gone to market and San Francisco and Miami versions would follow in the next two months.

"When we've bedded those four down to start with, then we'll roll out the next four and the next four," said Johnson.

The company planned to launch 20 of the magazines in the next three years and would employ two sales staff in each city. Editorial content is produced in Auckland.

Johnson said the city-by-city magazines, which sold in areas with 5 million to 10 million people, aimed to attract advertisers that were too small to advertise in the national versions of the magazines.

"We are getting to people who are in the local showrooms, the local designers and get into that sort of advertising area," said Johnson. "Our clients want to use the book as a marketing tool in their city."

The company's major advertisers included General Electric, Armstrong Flooring and James Hardie.

Trends titles entered American newsstands in 1997 and rank in the top 10 of sales in the US home and garden magazine sector, said Johnson.

Trends expanded from New Zealand into Australia in 1990, followed by Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong.

A US version of Kitchen Trends launched in 1997, followed by Home & Architectural Trends, Bathroom Trends and Home & Living Trends.