First published in 1932, Meredith acquired the title in 2005 as part of its purchase of Gruner + Jahr USA, now it may be being closed due to another acquisition, that of Time Inc.
Meredith yesterday announced a group of management changes… then let it be known that it would be closing Family Circle after the December issue. It was a sad way to mark the end of what had been a great magazine.
Along with Better Homes and Gardens, Ladies’ Home Journal, McCall’s, Good Housekeeping, Woman’s Day, and Redbook, Family Circle was known as being one of the seven sisters, magazines that were targeted at homemakers with husbands and children, rather than single, working women. But the era of Ozzie and Harriot is long over.
Looking at the audits, things looked OK, with the rate base at 4 million. But the amount of money brought in by subscriptions only averaged out to $0.69 an issue. But with print advertising declining, and Meredith’s portfolio larger now due to the Time Inc. acquisition, there was probably too many pages to fill with too few print ads to be found.
“When we acquired the Time Inc. portfolio of media brands in January 2018, we doubled our presence in the women’s lifestyle category,” said Doug Olson, President of Meredith Magazines. “Our portfolio philosophy continues to emphasize investing in brands that are market leaders and/or possess the highest growth potential. Sometimes, that means making hard decisions. Fortunately, we have been able to find new roles for some of the Family Circle team, and I would like to thank the entire group for its hard work and wish those employees affected the best in future endeavors.”