Ch. 15 - Retailing

In order to get their magazine into as many consumer hands as possible, while continuing to pursue high yield sales through various innovative means, Vogue continues to follow a diverse, multifaceted, retailing strategy that seems exceptionally able to grow and change along with the evolving market. Vogue can be easily found at most all types of retail operations including specialty stores (Book Stores), super markets, drug stores, convenience stores, and department stores. Such wide ranging retail outlet operations help sustain Vogue’s strong market presence while keeping hard copy sales of the magazine at competitively high levels.

A good deal of Vogue’s greatest retail success has come from direct mail retailing via subscription customers. Subscriptions are made very accessible to Vogue’s target market through both easy electronic retail methods on the magazines web site, Amazon, and other web sites, as well as through the more traditional mail in subscription request cards which continue to bolster overall sales with middle aged and older readers. 

As a primary component of its retail marketing strategy Vogue has very clearly defined its target market: modern women seeking to enhance their own unique identities through fashion, beauty, and cultural awareness. In recent years retail marketing strategies have expanded to include men, teenagers, and many culturally unique fashion cultures in cities all over the world.  

As for Vogue’s retail promotion strategy, various fun, innovative events have continued to promote the magazine’s supporters and overall customer base. Every year Vogue holds Fashion Night Out in New York’s fashion district, attracting celebrities, buyers, investors, and a spectacular amount of fanfare and publicity. More recently Vogue UK has begun holding Fashion Night In events, which focus on promoting one night online fashion sales events where online shoppers can enjoy various discounts on high end brands at specific times throughout the live, radio and internet broadcast event.  London’s Fashion Night In has proven to be hugely successful and seems to effectively compliment New York’s Fashion Night Out event, demonstrating that Vogue has what it takes to keep raising the bar in both the brick and mortar as well as online retail arena.