The new larger-than-life Women’s Weekly
emerged today – 330 pages with 140 pages of ads, nice, fat, and with a
price rise of 30c to $6.50 to help pay for the multi-million dollar
re-design and marketing campaign.

This is the first edition
under new editor Lisa Green. She’s replaced Deborah Thomas who was
moved upstairs to a broader role that includes overseeing the AWW books.

This is what publisher ACP told newsagents earlier in the year about the revamp:

“$3M SPENT ON THE RE-VITALISATION!
The magazine that always delivers you a great end of month, every month will now also feature:
· MORE customer appeal
· A FRESH new look
· LARGER format
· BOLDER use of colour

“The
Weekly is a powerhouse in the industry” says ACP Group
Publisher Pat Ingram. “We’ve had two years of record sales and we want to
continually raise the bar, as we have done for seven decades. This
dynamic look will do just that, while staying true to the spirit of The
Weekly. We’re investing in production values, increased marketing and
an injection of fresh talent to ensure the magazine continues to be
compelling value to our consumers.”

“Over $5 million has been
invested into a massive advertising blitz that will cover TV, magazines
and Connections-exclusive POS. This support will extend from August to
December 2005. “

What she didn’t say is that the real story is about arresting the decline in circulation over the past
year. This revamp is a very important role of the dice for the Packers.