It’s nice to get this level of cooperation from the mass media: Lucire Romania’s party last Friday was attended by many of our media colleagues, and has hit the pages throughout the country. I’m sure the appearance of model Monica Gabor, her boyfriend businessman Irinel Columbeanu, and celebrity Mihaela Tatu helped, but I credit a great deal to our team there, led by Valentin and Mirella Lapescu.
   The latest Romanian issue features Miss Gabor en couverture (left), the first time we’ve had a cover depart from the global issues’. The content remains the same, with the addition of some localized pieces—the philosophy was, from the beginning, to create a global title where the features would unite the planet. I still believe we can, even if I have the odd moaning session.
   The rationale this time was that we needed a local celebrity, and Miss Gabor was considered to be most worthy. It goes a little away from my vision; however, I back up Mirella and Valentin’s decision: there are marketing reasons behind it, it helped cement us in the eyes of the Romanian mainstream media, and it was actually quite well shot. They had selected a top photographer, so we were fortunate.
   Such talent does exist in New Zealand, but the trouble tends to be the small population: finding the top make-up artist, stylist, model and photographer in one place isn’t that easy. Hence, Kiwi covers tend to be shot in New York or, very occasionally, Los Angeles.
   While I had some initial resistance to the idea of a separate cover, I have to say I like the egotistical element. Having a magazine with the same cover (albeit in different languages) gives a feeling of satisfaction that your principles are being propagated. Having a magazine with different covers appeals directly to the ego, because while you still did the work inside, it gives you the impression that you did twice as much. In this day and age, however, where Business Week has given up the idea of separate editions, I believe my original idea is right.
   Therefore, the New Zealand and American editions, whose covers are presently photographed by Gray Scott of Veritas Management, should share their cover image, due to the quality of Gray’s work. A long time ago, we received some criticism that we should put on local celebrities—Charlotte Dawson was even suggested in the early days, though she has since emigrated to Australia. However, I question whether she is a “Lucire girl”. I won’t put on a celeb just for the sake of having one on the cover. I am not alone: at one meeting with an ad agency, the idea of Sally Ridge, who had appeared on a Fashion Quarterly cover months before, was universally panned. Carol Hirschfeld is the only “face” that comes close, and she knows this, but we haven’t been able to work out when, where, how and by whom. To date, we still have not shot a cover in New Zealand.
   As the New Zealand edition of Lucire is the “master edition”, we have to be globally minded, supplying to the world—which, regrettably, puts paid to the idea of a celebrity cover featuring a New Zealander, unless it happened to be a New Zealander who was globally known.
   We haven’t called Rachel Hunter yet, since I assume we can’t match Sports Illustrated’s payments. Ditto Lucy Lawless.

Del.icio.us tags: Lucire | Romania | media | cover | model | celebrity | New Zealand | fashion magazine | magazine Posted by Jack Yan, 10:28  permalink

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