15 Aug 2003 |

ABC Jan-Jun 2003: IKEA Room Surges In Home Interest Sector

The figures listed in NewsLine’s ABC reports are those reported by the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) as of Thursday 14 August 2003. Late submissions and changes may be made after this date, and will thereafter be amended in MediaTel’s Press database. For full notes on how NewsLine’s reports are compiled please see Important Notes: ABC January – June 2003.

The latest ABC figures for the six months ending 2003 revealed a turbulent time for the home interest sector, which saw its overall circulation increase year on year despite declines at a number of key titles.

There was positive news for IKEA Room, which surged ahead as the sector leader with a 31.9% year on year increase in circulation to 474,270. The title, which contains ideas and angles on contemporary living and design, continues to benefit from the fact that it is available free to customers that spend £10 or more at IKEA.

The sector also received a boost from Publicis Blueprint’s Homebase Ideas, which recorded an initial circulation of 497,090 after launching last November. The magazine targets 30 to 45 years-old woman and claims to dramatise home entertainment in an ‘accessible, inspirational and stylish way’.

Meanwhile, Condé Nast’s World Of Interiors welcomed a 2.8% year on year increase in circulation to 64,567 with its take on interior design proving popular with its key 25 to 44 year-old, ABC1 readership. Hachette Filipacchi’s Elle Decoration also performed well with a 2.1% increase during the same period to 61,954.

IPC saw a healthy 3.4% improvement at its Homes & Gardens magazine, which is set to receive a major revamp ahead of its September issue (see IPC Gives Homes And Gardens A Makeover). However, IPC’s flagship home interest title, Ideal Home, recorded a slight 0.9% decrease in circulation to 273,489.

The latest ABC results also revealed a rough period for the National Magazine Company, which saw a 10.2% year on year decline in circulation at House Beautiful. However, Country Living fared slightly better during the first half, with a dip of just 1.6% to 170,137.

Home Interest Magazines: Jan-Jun 2003 Year On Year Comparisons
Title	Publisher	Jan-Jun 02	Jan-Jun 03	Actual Change	% Change
25 Beautiful Homes	IPC Media	133,808	132,759	-1,049	-0.8
BBC Good Homes	BBC Magazines	125,420	106,002	-19,418	-15.5
BBC Homes & Antiques	BBC Magazines	160,635	151,307	-9,328	-5.8
Country Homes & Interiors	IPC Media	103,228	101,528	-1,700	-1.6
Country Living	National Magazine Company	163,154	170,137	6,983	4.3
Elle Decoration (B) (was Emap)	Hachette Filipacchi	60,709	61,954	1,245	2.1
English Home – UK Edition	Romsey Publishing	n/a	80,138	n/a	n/a
Homebase Ideas (R)	Publicis Blueprint	n/a	497,090	n/a	n/a
Home Building & Renovating (R)	Ascent Publishing	n/a	35,935	n/a	n/a
Homes & Gardens	IPC Media	156,177	161,553	5,376	3.4
House & Garden	Conde Nast	148,470		-148,470	-100.0
House Beautiful	National Magazine Company	189,569	170,200	-19,369	-10.2
House & Garden	Conde Nast	148,470	148,607	137	0.1
Ideal Home	IPC Media	276,063	273,489	-2,574	-0.9
IKEA Room	John Brown Citrus Publishing	359,524	474,270	114,746	31.9
Living etc	IPC Media	92,521	90,846	-1,675	-1.8
Period Living & Traditional Homes	Emap	75,274	72,649	-2,625	-3.5
Real Homes Magazine	Cabal Communications	133,020	116,104	-16,916	-12.7
World Of Interiors	Conde Nast	62,835	64,567	1,732	2.8
Total		2,388,877	2,909,135	520,258	21.8